Gameday

LEXICON got an entire feature article on Chicagoist! (Fun fact: I was interviewed at a brewery, where I shouted over the din of a surprise birthday party in between swigs of malty beer.) Thank you, Carrie McGath!

Katsy Johnson, Hot Dog Au Naturel, archival pigment print.

It’s a gorgeous, perfect summer day in Chicago. Come interact with great art! The exhibition opens tonight on the second floor of the Zhou B Art Center from 7-10pm!

(Teaser photo of the show in the previous post!)

Home Stretch

The show looks so good, you guys.

 

LEXICON opens tomorrow and I can’t wait for you to see it!

Also, I’ve added all of yesterday’s press coverage to the Press page!

Blank Canvas

Potential. The previous show in this 10,000 sq. ft. exhibition space has come down and it’s time for mine to go up! (Well, first I need to decide where almost 60 pieces are gonna’ go.) Come interact with art by over 40 artists on Friday!

Press!

• Here’s a behind-the-scenes installation video, live from the gallery. Thanks, Sergio Gomez!

• I wrote a guest post for Billy Dec’s blog. Thank you, A Chicago Thing!

• And this came as a surprise: LEXICON’s one of Crain’s Business’ top 10 things to do! Thank you!

And happy anniversary to my parents! Fitting that it’s Immigrant Heritage Month.

Magic

LEXICON opens this Friday! Here’s artwork sneak peek #9!

Andrew Ek, Vacuuming, oil on canvas.

People keep asking me if I’m including my own art in the show. I’ve finally decided, and the answer is yes! These old sketches of mine from 8(!) years ago—as well as these Scribble Sunday doodles—will be in the interactive exhibition. (People have also been asking me how everything’s going. This is how I’ve been dealing.)

Lastly, as we reel from the mass shooting at LGBTQ nightclub Pulse in Orlando, here’s how you can help the victims and their families and community.

“I love you as you are.”

Standing Tall

LEXICON opens next Friday, June 17! Here’s artwork sneak peek #8!

Angie Redmond, Fresh off the Boat with My Big Ass Afro.

And in case you missed the previous post, I have a new post on Time Out Chicago: 10 art gallery shows to see this month, including—of course—a certain interactive exhibition.

Glazed

LEXICON’s one of Time Out Chicago’s top 10 gallery exhibitions to see this month [because I wrote the post, muahaha]. The interactive art show opens in two weeks!

Happy National Donut Day (the Stan’s Donuts and Coffee staff cracked up when they noticed my Inigo Montoya / Simpsons mashup t-shirt) and have a great weekend!

Value

LEXICON’s been featured on Amplified Art Network! Thank you, Sergio Gomez!

Here’s artwork sneak peek #7!

Olivia Shih, Value Building Blocks, wood and Masonite.

And in personal art news: Ming-Na Wen herself retweeted and reposted my Mulan / Game of Thrones mashup doodle. I cannot I can’t I just (And the reason why the true Mother of Dragons was on my mind in the first place was because I commended BD Wong for going off on racists at his Twitter and he favorited my tweet. The past week has been filled with a lot of screaming, basically.)

Modern Life

LEXICON’s been featured on my alma mater’s alumni page! Thank you so much! Always proud to be a Columbia University graduate.

Here’s artwork sneak peek #6!

Zachary J. Williams, Crazy for God, oil paint.

Also, thank you to Mashable for featuring my photo of this experience I had in Hong Kong and to LoganSquarist for featuring my photo of an outdoor doodle I made over the weekend!

Moon

LEXICON opens 1 month from today! Here’s artwork sneak peek #5:

Alix Anne Shaw, TRYST / TRUST / TRISTE, animated neon poem.

I’ve made slight changes to the show’s official page as well as the Facebook event. Check ‘em out, and if you’re on FB, invite yourself and your friends!

And an art-related throwback to my 5^th Grade yearbook / my 10-year-old self’s favorite things:

Janet Jackson, emo lyrics from Janet Jackson, Seinfeld, Disney, dogs, drawing, writing, pizza, food in general. Sounds about right. (Also a year later I’d have an answer to “favorite movie”: the 1999 version of The Mummy.) Also props to my mom for being able to make me wear a dress for the school picture every year; it was embarrassing then but makes for glorious photos now—peep those poofy sleeves.

Strength

Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, everyone! To kick it off, here’s LEXICON artwork sneak peek #4:

Aisha Yousaf, Love & Oil, pen and ink.

More to get this glorious month started: A thought I had on naming, from the previous post.

Fellow AAPIs, tell your story!

And one of my favorite projects I came across this past year that’s always worth revisiting: “Chinatown Pretty,” a celebration of the street style of [adorable!] seniors living in San Francisco’s Chinatown.

(Also, I have a new post on Time Out Chicago today: 9 art gallery exhibitions to see in May.)

In Bloom

LEXICON artwork sneak peek #3!

Sheila Arora, Pick Me, acrylic on canvas.

The exhibition opens in June, but you can also see Sheila’s acrylic paintings at a pop-up solo show tonight in the Loop!

And since it’s gonna’ be May / Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month next week:

I loved Fresh off the Boat showing how the Huangs chose their American names on last night’s episode. My parents, immigrants from Hong Kong, also chose their own English names. There’s something so powerful about that—being young, coming from nothing, literally making a name for yourself. My dad, a kid living in Shek Kip Mei public housing estate, named himself after Alexander the Great. How badass is that?

Odyssey

LEXICON artwork sneak peek #2!

Zoe Beaudry, Deathless Gods, Remember Me II.

Here’s something that I needed to say regarding some movie news last week.

And as a follow-up to this post: My Centennial Project prize package—including Find Your Park gear and an annual pass to all U.S. national parks in 2016—arrived! (A couple months ago, I was selected as a First Prize Winner for the National Park Service and National Park Foundation’s Centennial Project, all thanks to you who voted for a drawing I made when I was 15. Heart eyes.)

There's totally a code under my thumb.

Happy spring, everyone!

Release the Kraken

As I said last week, a record number of artists applied to LEXICON. Thank you, again, for sharing so much art with me. Today, I am thrilled to announce the selected artists! Hailing from all over Chicago, the country, and the world, they include:

Adrienne Glover, Adrienne Powers, Agnieszka Ligendza, Aisha Yousaf, Alba Margarita, Alix Anne Shaw, Allen Vandever, Amanda Mudrovich, Andrew Ek, Angie Redmond, Annette Hur, Arturo Mazon, Brianna Baurichter, Céline Browning, Christine Nicklos, Cristy Corso, David del Bosque, Emilie Bouvet-Boisclair, Emily Calvo, George Lindmark, Jamie Gold, Jessica Smit, Judi Tussey, Julia Mellen, Karen Hirsch, Katsy Johnson, Kelli Anthony, Kristin Ingram, Laura Lein-Svencner, Lisa Goesling, Mairin Hartt, Michael Coakes, Olivia Shih, Peggy Shearn, Peyton Michelle Rack, Rachel Dennis, Rita Grendze, Russ Revock, Sandra Bridges, Scott Fincher, Shane Small, Sheila Arora, Stuart Hall, Su Yin Zhou, Zachary J. Williams, Zoe Beaudry, and you. Congratulations!

                                        

Now, let the LEXICON artwork sneak peeks begin! Here’s your first look at the show:

Arturo Mazon, Oct on My Head, mixed media.

Much more to come!

Windows and Mirrors

Thank you to all who applied to LEXICON! I’ve received applications from over 70(!) artists! That’s the most I’ve ever gotten for a show. (So know that if you aren’t selected, it’s nothing personal. I mean, it never is, but still. And if you are selected, it’s something to brag about.) I’m excited to go through all of these submissions! And get excited for the artist announcement—and the beginning of artwork sneak peeks—next week.

I don't always take selfies, but when I do,
I prefer to face a stainless steel and resin sculpture
at the VIP Private View of Art Basel Hong Kong.

In case you missed the previous post, I’m back from my annual Hong Kong trip that’s really an excuse for me to do cool stuff all over my parents’ birthplace and get fed and hang out with my dad’s side of the family and get fed for Art Basel, and you can view my photos all over social media.

Happy April!

Bel Canto

I’m back from Hong Kong (photos on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, and 500px), and I bring a cold (quarantining myself), the most intense tan on the top of my forehead and the part in my hair (that’s what I get for using my hands as a visor?), and a reminder that artist applications for my next show, LEXICON, are due on Monday!

One of my favorite spots in Hong Kong:
The Tang Dynasty-style Nan Lian Garden and Chi Lin Nunnery.

And I love getting these kinds of emails. Thank you. (The “exhibition near the Damen stop” is I CAN DO THAT, and “this one” is, of course, LEXICON.)

Primary Sources

Today I’m flying out to Hong Kong for Art Basel. (I know, I was, like, just there, but this time’s for art!) Speaking of art, as announced in the previous post, I have a call for artists for my next exhibition, LEXICON. Apply! I look forward to going through all your submissions when I’m back. (In HK I look forward to doing this.)

If you haven’t already, vote! When I went on Saturday, next to me was a 17-year-old (he’ll be 18 by the general election) who was there with his mom. I felt so proud of the kid.

You know the drill; follow along on Instagram and Twitter for live updates and photos of my trip, and refer to this post for my March art recommendations. See you at the end of the month, Chicago.

Call for Artists: LEXICON

Artists! Apply to my next show, LEXICON, opening Friday, 17 June, 7-10pm, in the newly renovated 10,000 sq. ft. exhibition space of the Zhou B Art Center.

Part of the space. Photo courtesy of the Zhou B Art Center.

Everyone else: Spread the word, clear your calendars, and get excited!