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CONGRATULATIONS TO IACA CYCLE #32
MINI-GRANT RECIPIENT, ANDREW WONG!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW NONPROFIT MINI-GRANT WINNER,
VIRTUAL ARTS FOR HUMANITY!
The following are excerpts from Wong's grant proposal:
Growing up in Hong Kong and the States, Andrew always had a passion for art. However, when it came time to choose a career, he opted for Fashion Design instead of Fine Arts. He never dared to pursue his dream of becoming an artist.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the inevitable and emotional stay-at-home order transitioned the reality and priorities of daily life. He began working with cardboard boxes as a fun activity with his children as an escape from the monotonous stress of the imposed and indefinite isolation. This play turned into a passion as Andrew reiterated these cut-out designs and models into more intricate forms of portraiture. Paper became the preferred medium. Attaching and lifting the simple cardboard cut-outs perpendicular to the substrate to build three-dimensional works of art that allow light to illuminate hues and articulate shadows, creating an elaborate portrait full of depth and feeling. The process is gratifying, and he felt compelled to continue this work as both a means of expression and defiance.
As an Asian American, Andrew felt that his culture was simultaneously under-represented in the mainstream media and relegated to Orientalism and jokes. Knowing the stories are complex, beautiful and deserve to be told in all their intricacy, the aim is to highlight and celebrate the beauty of his culture and heritage. Positively portraying and lifting the many marginalized individuals and communities in the United States who share in the invalidating experience of being both under-represented and misrepresented.
These paper artworks were created for a solo exhibition titled "MASKS,"this exhibit uses paper that is standing on edge above the canvas as the main medium. Light, shadow, color, and space interplay with one another to produce an image that appears to be elevated off of the canvas, an effect I call “lifting." Lifting the subject matter off of the confines of the canvas into a new plane of perception.
My purpose in this exhibition is not only to create an aesthetic through light and paper but to learn and “lift” up those under-represented cultures in America. Celebrating culture and heritage through a new medium, with a new perspective.
The grant will allow me to have more time to focus and to further develop the crafts of "lifting."
You may be the next grant winner! Click here to apply.
There is no specific type of artist that we focus on or primarily support. Creative expression comes in a wide variety of artistic disciplines and genres. We are looking for passion and excellence in your craft. Tell us why your work is important to you and how you hope it will impact others.
Where Eagles Soar (Isaiah 40:31)
Integrity: Arts & Culture Association is honored to approve Wong's funding request and we wish him continued success in his creative endeavors.
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