Fear of the Known
Artwork on Racial Discrimination
Artist Statement:
“The arteries, a system of biological connections, breaking symbolizes the dissolving compulsion towards racist thoughts...The tiger is not shaded by foliage but is open, unconcealed, like the issue of racial discrimination. The hand reaches toward the tiger, symbolizing the initiative to approach this issue of racial prejudice. We reduce to skeleton, as depicted in the hand, if we let ourselves believe that the color of our skin defines us. The heart and soul of our society disappears.”
Medium: Pen
Styles: Crosshatching and Stippling
Battling the Storm
A Tribute To Healthcare Workers
Artist Statement:
“The ship lost in the stormy sea parallels our emotions in the coronavirus pandemic, a place of no hope. A giant wave looms overhead signaling impending doom that seems to strike anytime and submerge us. However, there are coronavirus masks instead of sails, representing the help of science pushing us through. The moon represents the disastrous force of nature in the form of the pandemic. The doctor, bigger and brighter than the moon, demonstrates these heroic healthcare workers battling against it. The healthcare workers are pulling us to safety, using the stethoscope like a rope. They are sensing our stress and alleviating it.”
Medium: Watercolor
2020
Raging Cuckoo
Climate Change and the Pandemic
“The cuckoo clock in the burning forest represents how we are stuck in our houses because of the pandemic while the world around us is raging on fire and is going crazy! Time has stopped. We feel anxious - the cuckoo bird is flying away, trying to escape.”
Medium: Acrylic
2020
Rising
Rising above the barrage of Covid news
Many of us have been feeling the pressure and the grief from the barrage of news that continues to escalate and worsen as the year 2020 progressed. However, wishing for the end while continuing to dwell on the grievances is not effective. We need to encourage ourselves to do the best as individuals to make a difference in our lives and our society at the moment while knowing that at some point in the future, life will return to normal and we will be even stronger. We should try to rise up as individuals in a way that we could not think is possible to face these dark times.
Paradise
Live life to the best
The girl walking on the beach toward the water during sunset represents how despite the troubles of the pandemic (like not being able to go to the beach), we have the choice of making the best out of this time. Many of us currently feel depressed and worried because of the pandemic, but we can get to decide to instead live happily, have fun at home with family, continue fulfilling our goals/dreams. Even though we cannot go to the beach, we can envision and make our own paradise. We can construct our own pier and walk toward that paradise.
Sensationalism
News Sensationalism and Infotainment
Both Republican and Democratic news outlets created sensationalism in the news through infotainment. This infused hatred for the opposing party and led to our divided nation. Insults were traded back and forth and soon political discussion turned into noise, like TV static. The previous administration bent the dimensions of truth, twisting it to form an alternate reality, an illusion. The government in conjunction with news outlets propagated fiery emotions along with the “news” and a fragment of the public readily and unconsciously consumed it. They instilled fear of the enemy and love for the party incessantly in the public’s minds and these emotions escalated, driving our nation into chaos. Big Brother in George Orwell’s 1984 novel was the epitome of a leader creating alternate realities and instilling emotions for the purpose of staying in power. The Ministry of Truth rewrote events in newspapers, magazines, and other publicly distributed records, correcting the government’s blunders. The previous administration’s facade of competency hindered societal progress, similar to Ingsoc, the political party ruling in 1984. Our democracy withered under corruption and resembled such a dystopia.
The Next
Catastrophe
Reflection on Covid-19 Pandemic: We need to focus on preventing the next catastrophe
People are watching the Jurassic Park movie and they do not notice that the movie is happening in real life as illustrated with the velociraptor in the bucket of popcorn and the T-rex approaching eerily. Our lives for the last year feels like we are in a movie. We should realize that with issues like climate change, historical injustices, and even the pandemic, there were signs that these issues could culminate and we didn’t take as much precaution as we should have. As a result, movie plots turn into our reality. We need to take appropriate action to prevent these issues from culminating into disastrous events in the future. The girl is gazing and laughing at the movie unaware that she is in it and that there is a velociraptor also gazing at the movie in her popcorn bucket, demonstrating how our ignorance is dangerous and scary. To further this idea of how we aren't taking enough actions to prevent disasters, in the Jurassic Park movie, the scientists knew that there could still be a chance that the dinosaurs breed and take over the island, but they didn't do anything to stop it.
Chess on Mars
Stay Determined and Creative! We can do anything we set our minds to!
The pandemic has exposed numerous societal issues. It seems hard to tackle challenges in our world no matter how much we want to. It feels like things are the way that they are and we cannot do anything about it. However, as represented by the kangaroo kicking over the chess king rather than the chess knight, solutions can come from unexpected places and appear in interesting and surprising ways. That means even if we cannot see a solution, we should stay energetic, determined, and strive toward finding those solutions; eventually we will develop those interesting and innovative solutions that blow us away! As individuals, we are each one chess piece in a game of chess pieces and thus, we have to work together to checkmate. We can plan and strategize and every piece counts - as indicated by the pawn. Things so far fetched as going to Mars have happened because we have the strength and willpower to complete feats of mankind and achieve our conquests. We will always live in a world of uncertainty where anything can happen, but with determination, we can achieve what we set minds to.
Submerged Beauty
Our growth during the pandemic
The tree growing underwater represents how we have adapted to the pandemic and how we have still grown despite the hardships. We are still submerged in this pandemic, but there is still hope represented by the hand out-reach and approaching the water's surface as well as the light shining from above through the water. The whale, the largest animal on earth, is a majestic animal whose sheer magnitude results in awe and huge respect. In this piece, it represents how we have developed a new profound respect for ourselves, for each other, and for our community after realizing what is precious in life. Like the reaction after looking at a whale, our reaction to this pandemic is awe after realizing the hugeness of our world and how we share the world with many others. We became humbled and we started looking out at the world and beyond our own lives.
Vaccination of the World
A moment in history...
This piece highlights this moment in history where the vaccination of the world would be someone’s 3 magic wishes during this covid-19 pandemic (like ending world hunger or getting world peace). The doctor replaces the genie, since the doctor fulfills that wish. The vaccine through the earth represents the “vaccination of the world."
Unveiled Fractured Reality
Underlying Problems No Longer Concealed To All of Society
The red curtain at the beginning of the circus show has fallen and the underlying fragmented society is revealed. The ceiling ribbon dancer that performs at the circus represents the idea of our society’s distraction and simple-minded entertainment, specifically by the everyday events. They distracted us from noticing major underlying societal issues: huge political division, inequity, racial discrimination, etc that now have been revealed in the pandemic. The ceiling ribbon dancer’s routine makes us feel as though we lack coordination, similar to the lack of coordination we feel in terms of our response to the pandemic. The fractured glass represents our underlying fractured society and idea that these issues are presented right in front of us unmistakable, unignorable, and we have to reflect on them to fix these issues.
Medium: Acrylic and Watercolor
Technique: Cut-out artwork
DestructiveEcho Chambers
Let's fix the cause!
The bubbles illustrate the “bubbles of reality” created around MAGA rioters and trump supporters due to echo chambers developed by Trump, republican politicians, and social media platforms like Twitter. These people and the “bubbles of reality” are the reason for the capitol siege that shook the world. The bubbles filled with misinformation became too big that they popped leading to the downfall of the rioters after the siege. The idea is to show that those who were unknowingly committing crimes should be punished (the MAGA rioters still knew that they were being violent and that is a crime), but those who knowingly committed crimes (republican lawmakers and the president who spread the lies and incited the rioters) should definitely be held accountable.
Destructible Diamond
Preparation Prevention Caused By Widely Accepted Facade
The diamond represents our society and how we think it is pristine, perfect, and unbreakable. We think it has a solid foundation, but in reality, it is a sharp tip. The pandemic hit causing our society to shatter represented by the bats depicted like shattered glass caused by the strike of lightning. We did not have a response to the sudden hit of the pandemic represented by the lightning and the storm approaching.
Medium: Acrylic
Printmaking Birds
Freeing society
Medium: Printmaking Black and White
2016
Women Empowerment
Horse made out of charcoal
Medium: Charcoal
Power of Thoughts
Facing our fears
The painting portrays how mind can be used to overcome fear and leave negative thoughts behind. The thoughts which we most often keep replaying in our mind tend to come true. These thoughts over a period of time become powerful enough to influence our attitude, expectations, behavior and actions. Hence our mind should be clear of negative thoughts, fear and doubts. We should paint new beautiful and positive images in our mind. We need to be more conscious of our thinking process and try to control the content of our mind. The girl in the painting is trying to overcome her fear of diving from heights. The mind is the face behind the girl on the cliff. The other images depict the thoughts running through the mind to rise above using inner strength and leave negative thoughts behind. We can master our world, when we master our mind.
Medium: Acrylic
2015
Stephen Curry
NBA Golden State Warriors
Medium: Drawing with Pencil
Journey Towards Self-Realization
Medium: Acrylic
Woman wearing a scarf
Medium: Drawing with Pencil
Conscious Transformation through Mindfulness
Self-reflection
Medium: Acrylic
