Artist Statement

I’ve always loved art history and traditional paintings, but I grew up without seeing people that looked like me, my family, or my community represented, and I wanted to change that. So, for the last several years, beginning with my senior thesis during my undergrad, I developed a body of work –Pasifika– where my goal was to somehow capture the essence of a culture through my static, visual medium. Could I induce the smell of tropical flowers, the movement of dance, and the feeling of communal love with just a painting? Could a beautiful object address the ugly truths of history? I explored composition, patterns, graphic shapes, and vibrant colors alongside flora, fashion, arts, and customs familiar to the Pacific Islands in an effort to create a new visual style that challenges the narrative of who is fit to be the subject and why. I no longer want to live in a world where my friends and family doubt their validity in the artistic canon. I want to reimagine where all types of cultures and people can exist to create space and memorialize them in the world of fine art. 

Pasifika:

An excerpt from my Senior Thesis ‘22

“This series will be my initial attempt at capturing culture as a whole: including music, dance, crafts, fashion, tradition, materials, etc. in a body of still images. This body of work is intended to increase the representation of the Pacific Islander community in the arts and media and to bring forward authentic lived experiences…

At the beginning of this semester, I was asked, ‘What would you like your art to say?’ And in the end, my answer was clear:

Ha’ina ‘ia mai ana ka puana

Let the story be told”

Responsibility

“I am by no means an expert in anthropology. This is to say that where I have chosen to begin is what I know best and what I believe I could authentically and holistically represent from my personal experiences at this current moment, but as I seek to diversify my narratives and expand the scope of this work, much more research is to be done before I even attempt to speak on the lived experiences of other peoples. Research that I have and will continue to conduct comes in all forms from books, articles, films, museums, interviews, events, dances, and music to name a few. There is a lot of work to be done even before the artistic process begins, but this is how I create authentic work that I am proud to call my own. With all this said, it must now be clear that there is no shortcutting this journey and that this body of work is and will continue to be a work in progress long after my time at LCAD ends.”