Artist Statement
Yun-Yun Lee uses mixed media, such as oil paint, acrylic, gauche, lino print, and pencil drawings, to celebrate the beauty she sees in, and the gratitude she has for, growing up in both Chinese and North-American cultures. She enjoys exploring in different styles of expression, from pencil portraits to illustrative landscapes; from still life paintings to abstract lino cut prints; Yun-Yun Lee inspires to combine symbols, colors, forms, and lines as a gesture to bring her eastern and western experiences together. She sees art as a means to not only document journeys and experiences, but also to share with others the peace, joy, and love we are given the ability to recognize and embrace.

Biography

Yun-Yun Lee is a Taiwanese Canadian actress/artist born in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1990. She immigrated to Canada when she was fifteen years old, and graduated from Emily Carr University of Art and Design with her BFA degree in 2012, with a concentration in drawing and print making.
She grew up seeing her mother, Li-Chin Lin, finding freedom and beauty in making Chinese ink paintings; and witnessing her father, Li-Chun Lee, an actor in Taiwan and China, living his most complex and authentic self on and off screen. Lee’s parents have inspired her to pursue the arts both in drawing and painting, as well as in acting.
Lee won the Robert Bateman Get To Know national contest in 2008, and got an entrance scholarship for university. She was selected as an exchange student for the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design in Washington, D.C., in 2010.
In 2012, Lee and her mother collaborated with the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce In BC for their 20th Annual Gala Dinner fundraiser, in which Lee exhibited a series of oil paintings and her mom a series of Chinese ink paintings.
Her oil painting techniques were taught to her by artists Pang Jiun and his student Sophia Lin for a few years, who both specialize in the impressionistic style.
After winning first place in Hidden Energy, a Chinese film talent show in China in 2015, Lee started her career as an actress and an artist, finding ways to express her gratitude for a colorful multicultural journey.
She was baptized as a Christian in 2017, which marked a chapter of new perspectives and spiritual growth, from which she finds not only nourishment, wisdom, guidance, peace, love, and hope, but also artistic, creative inspirations.

Yun-Yun Lee is currently a working actress/artist based in Burnaby, B.C..

Artist Statement

Weaving has become an effective technique in my current work, influenced by traditional practice from the Ilocos region, Philippines—my region of birth—a process I have never learned.
Here, I translate the motifs and symbols of textile, basketry weaving and webbing into paper or canvas weaving. By deconstructing, collaging, and cutting the archival and research materials, I can reconstruct, patch, and interweave historical records and create a counter-narrative. As social movements have risen over the past few years, the need to identify my positionality has pointed me toward my colonized history. Thus, in this process, decolonial practice is also interlinked. As a Filipino Canadian artist creating on the traditional unceded territories of the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh nations, North Vancouver, it is essential for me to decolonize my mind.
 
The new works I create encourage new ways of thinking and innovative artmaking. Ultimately, my artwork aims to reclaim, highlight, and celebrate Filipino identity and cultural heritage from the legacy of colonialism. Further, to comprehend my positionality, weave our stories, and disturb the ‘Filipino invisibility’ within the Canadian landscape.

Since immigrating to Canada in 2015, I have only been exposed to and taught Western artists, philosophies, and histories. As a result, my paintings undeniably echo Western visual elements, techniques, and interpretations. As I advanced my art practice, my studio professors introduced me to the concept of ‘Parallax’—the change in the observer’s point of view due to an apparent displacement of an object. In my case, I use myself as the subject by reconfiguring the paradigm and perceiving my works from a new perspective.
 
“Ang hindi lumingon sa pinangalingan ay hindi makakarating sa paroroonan’ or ‘a person who does not look back at where they came from will not reach their destination,” a famous Filipino saying helps as a motivation for my new exploration. This time, I am embarking on a journey that looks back at Philippine history, investigating its centuries of colonization while closely looking at art and architecture and simultaneously examining its effects and the changes or developments through the utilization of painting, sculpture, paper weaving and art installation.

Biography

Karl Mata Hipol is a Filipino Canadian multidisciplinary artist, curator, and writer creating on the traditional unceded territories of the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh nations, also known as North Vancouver. His work spans drawing, painting, weaving, photography, sculpture, art installation, and public artwork. Currently, his artistic practice looks at Archival Collections from galleries and museums to investigate the absence or presence of Filipinos in Canada. He aims to weave his story and disturb ‘Filipino invisibility’ within the Canadian landscape. He holds a BFA (2022) with a major in Visual Arts and a minor in Curatorial Practices from Emily Carr University, where he was awarded the OPUS Art Supplies Graduation Award (BFA) and an Honorable Mention for the ECU Graduation Award for Anti-Racism + Social Justice. He has previously curated an exhibition at the Gordon Smith Gallery and Faculty Gallery, ECU. His gallery exhibitions include the Coquitlam Heritage, Il Centro Museo, Burnaby Village Museum, Burrard Arts Foundation, Centre A, Headline Gallery, Seymour Art Gallery, the Reach Gallery Museum, and Federation Gallery. He was also the artist-in-residence awardee at the Herschel Supply Co., Gastown (2022).

Artist Statement

Watercolor painting and Tai Chi are activities Chan does each day. These two art forms have much in common: they both require total focus, balance, and a sense of control over your energy flow. They both have contradictions that complement each other – dynamic and tranquility co-existing. Both, in the end, bring forth relaxation and satisfaction.
For watercolor, Sam likes pleinair (to practice draw a quick sketch) in summertime. Alas, the reality of the pacific west coast has him painting indoor most of the time.
Chan’s favorite part is the transparency of watercolor. It is like putting layer of film on paper, light can pass through and it gets reflected back. It produces a light feeling. Moreover, he uses wet on wet technique which the blending often leads to unexpected results. Balancing of light and shade can help create good composition. He starts painting from light to medium and dark tones.
Most of Chan’s painting subjects are from photos he takes during walks. For instance, when he paints the koi fish painting, he starts the sketch of fish, the waterlily, lily pad, and then rocks. Chan uses masking fluid to cover the fish waterlily and lily pad, he paints the rock with mix of burnt sienna, and burnt umber, using sepia and indigo for dark area. After it dries, Sam removed the masking fluid. Then he paints the fish wet on wet with yellow orange and red, mix sepia and indigo fore black, let the blend together. Add little blue color to paint the belly part. Sam also tries not to paint all the fish with the same tone. To finish up, he add thin layer of blue on water, and avoid the head of fish to suggest the fish’s body is in the water.
Pick up the brush, relax, and start painting.
Chan feels very thankful for his wonderful art teachers. Mr. Dave T F Chung and Paul Chui.

Biography

Sam was born in Macau. He lived briefly in Montreal and did his studies in Winnipeg before settling in Vancouver in the early 80s. He started painting while he was still working in his career in the telecom industry. He enjoys being surrounded by the beautiful nature found in BC and finds inspiration in the everyday scenery all around.
After his retirement, he enjoys travel, painting and teaching Tai Chi , He is an active member of the Burnaby Artist’s Guild and his work can be found in various local art shows.

Contact: art.samchan@gmail.com

Join us online or in person for VAHMS 2023 AGM where we will reflect on our 2022 year, and present our vision for the explorAsian 2023 Festival. This is a hybrid event, where attendees can join online, or in person at Pasta Polo: 2754 Barnet Hwy, Coquitlam, BC V3B 1B9. 

If you’re interested in attending in person, please email: office.vahms@gmail.com to reserve a spot by Friday, January 13. 

Register for the event here.

Artist Statement

For many years I had an innate yearning for sketching. Like a walled fortress, fear of failure and apprehension kept me at bay because it takes courage to draw. Failure is not the opposite of success but rather a stepping stone to success.

There can be something good to be said of a lockdown. To conquer the banality of it, one can embark on new journeys, and I did.  From making walking sticks, and designing my jackets to learning new languages, I found a way to keep busy.  One day, I pulled out a sketch gifted to me by the renowned artist Raymond Chow; the beauty of his work was the instant inspiration, so I thought to myself, I can do this, as in the famous words of the American Civil War Admiral Farragut, “Damn the torpedoes full speed ahead. “ 

My first-ever drawing was of one of our family’s ancestral homes in China. From that trip to our rural village, I knew, at first glance, that it was a structure of beauty. My subjects are varied and foremost images of destinations I traveled, allowing me to relive my footsteps and awaken memories of worldly explorations. I draw from inspiration, as traveling is like looking through a kaleidoscope with its ever-changing impressions. Here, I try to capture those moments, one sketch at a time. 

Drawing has been therapeutic, and it has become my default pastime. “The magic of drawing is like a spiritual light bathing your consciousness to bring images to fruition. The sense of accomplishment is priceless when you transform an empty, vacuous canvas into visually pleasing artwork.” “Paper, pens, and rulers are my basic tools, and drawing allows me to write my own story.”

Biography

Jeff is a Chinese Canadian born and raised in Vancouver. A graduate of UBC in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences in Vancouver, B.C. For many years, Jeff had a fulfilling career in the healthcare industry and volunteered with the Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society, focusing his work on fundraising and Ambassador roles. In the same capacity, he also volunteers at the Vancouver Visual Arts Foundation. With no formal art education but a passion for drawing, Jeff has recently been enamored with sketching upon his memories of his extensive travels around the world. “Some sights have left an indelible impression on me, and that is reflected in my sketches, drawings, and designs. “For Jeff, art brings people together and fosters a sense of connectivity. 

We’ve partnered with the Arts Club Theatre Company to let you know about their important new play, Forgiveness. Experience the power of Forgiveness.

Based on the acclaimed memoir by Mark Sakamoto, Forgiveness is the powerful story of his family’s harrowing experiences during World War II. Ralph, Sakamoto’s maternal grandfather, was a Canadian soldier of European descent who spent years in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. Mitsue, his paternal grandmother, was one of the thousands of Japanese Canadians interned by the government. In the face of tremendous adversity and transgressions, they chose not to live a life of anger but instead to embrace forgiveness—a gift of love they passed down to their families. Get tickets now from $35 at artsclub.com.

Don’t miss this innovative World Premiere, January 12 to February 12 at the Arts Club’s Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage. #ACTCForgiveness

Photo credit: Griffin Cork and Yoshie Bancroft; projection design by Cindy Mochizuki; photo by David Cooper

Artist Statement

Michelle Sound’s work explores personal and familial narratives with a consideration of Indigenous artistic processes. Her works explore cultural identities and histories by engaging materials and concepts within a contemporary context. Through utilizing such practices as drum making, caribou hair tufting, beadwork, painting and photography, her work highlights that acts of care and joy are situated in family and community. They work with traditional and contemporary materials and techniques to explore maternal labour, identity, and cultural knowledges.  

Biography

Michelle Sound is a Cree and Métis artist, educator and mother. She is a member of Wapsewsipi Swan River First Nation in Northern Alberta. Her mother is Cree from Kinuso, Alberta, Treaty 8 territory and her father’s family is Métis from the Buffalo Lake Métis settlement in central Alberta. She was born and raised on the unceded and ancestral home territories of the x?m??kw?y??m (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and S?l?ílw?ta?/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Simon Fraser University, School for the Contemporary Arts, and a Master of Applied Arts from Emily Carr University Art + Design. Michelle is currently an Indigenous Advisor at Douglas College and has taught workshops as a guest artist at the Richmond Art Gallery and the Contemporary Art Gallery.

Public art pieces include a utility box art wrap (City of Vancouver), street banners(City of New Westminster) and a painted mural exhibition in Ottawa-2018 n?kateyimisowin/Taking Care of Oneself, Curated by Joi Arcand. Michelle was a 2021 Salt Spring National Art Award Finalist and has had recent exhibitions at the Art Gallery of St. Albert, Neutral Ground ARC (Regina), Daphne Art Centre (Montréal), the Polygon Gallery and the grunt gallery(Vancouver). Her recent artist residency at Burrard Arts Foundation included her exhibition Aunties Holding It Together.

Check out more of Michelle’s art on her website www.michellesound.art or on Instagram @michellesound.art

Artist Statement

Through illustration and comics I explore personal investigations and commemorations into grief and memories, the humor of everyday narratives, and issues of identity and family. I often work off of my own poetry, physical diaries, and digital record-keeping. I’m interested in collaging and preserving daily moments, managing my passionate love affair with the internet, and—despite what my resting sad face would have you think—making people laugh.

Biography

April dela Noche Milne (she/her) is a Filipino-Canadian illustrator and writer living in Vancouver. April studied Fine Arts at Langara College and graduated with a BFA in Illustration from Emily Carr University. She was the artist for the graphic novel The Blue Road: A Fable of Migration, and the children’s book The Imperfect Garden. She was also a contributor to the comic anthology The Witching Hours. April is a recent graduate of the Writer’s Studio at Simon Fraser University.

Check out more of April’s art on her website aprilmilne.com or on Instagram and Twitter @apricotjoy 

Sigh up to her Newsletter https://mygutisacosmos.substack.com/.

We are thrilled to share that CultureBrew.Art (CBA) is officially OPEN! With its national searchable database of Indigenous and racialized artists who work in the performing, literary, and media arts, CBA is an essential resource for anyone wanting to find and collaborate with BIPOC artists, as well as BIPOC artists wanting to find and connect with each other.

To celebrate, CBA will be hosting a free nationwide virtual launch event on November 18th, featuring award-winning actor and writer Jean Yoon – best known for her work as Mrs. Kim on Kim’s Convenience – as Keynote Speaker! Join them for a free-wheeling conversation as Jean talks TV celebrity versus the trenches of Canadian theatre, balancing artistic pursuits with advocacy for equity, and finding one’s power and voice as a racialized artist, with CBA’s Co-Directors, Valerie Sing Turner and Anju Singh.  

Register now!