WCAAD Student Art Projects of PORTFOLIO PREP/Advance Teen Art Courses (4)

Student Name: Jenny Guan

Title: Broken reflections

Work type: Installation art

Category:  Fine Art/Fashion

Size: 8ft x 4ft

Jenny Guan creates a work to be experienced through multimedia layering. The idea of the self and beauty is at its core. The idea of age beauty and time can feel existential triggering the viewers with broken mirrors reflecting. Conceptually the work is also siting environmental awareness of throw away fashion as the trash bags can seems beautiful away from the intended purpose yet still manages to take you back to the utilitarian origins of trash and fleeting moments in the fashion world-what will be the next fashion trend and what we do as a society to try to fit in.

This installation art is a modern art form that can transforms a space into an immersive, three-dimensional designed to surround the viewer through not only the art but the space. Instead of being a single, isolated art object, it invites and stages a complete experience that can stimulate to many senses. This artwork can accommodate any larger spaces with the aim to transcending in experience. This immersive experience in how the audience can view and be part of the artwork by entering and changing the space from public viewing to a one-to-one intimate artwork. This project has a mixture of found objects, fashion, paint, lighting and immersion.

Student Name: Victoria Wang

Title: Tarot Design

Work type: Graphic illustration (digital) 

Category: Graphic Design

Size: 11 x17

Victoria Wang gives herself a challenge by creating an illustration series. She put it all together with a graphic illustration series and a collection of artworks unified by a unique theme, in concept and style. The tarot. As she planned this series, she attempted different artistic styles and techniques collecting references research and made a variety of thumbnails. Overall, her goal was to tell a story through narrative with inspiration from anime, mangas, comics, graphic novels, and children's books and even games. Working on multiple pieces at once allowed her to have several pieces in progress at the same time assisting in maintaining consistency and momentum. Learning as you go mentality created space for adaptation to design each illustration and apply it to the next. This allowed the series to evolve organically as Victoria embraced discovery.

Tarot has inspired artists to create countless themed and reimagined original decks. The diversity Victoria sought out in her modern rendition for tarot art include, Dark Fantasy , Gothic and mysterious aesthetic to name a few. Choosing a digital media and Pop art sensibility was a bi-product of this fun stylized work.

Student Name: Phoebe Li

Title: Light of Life

Work type: Mixed media

Category: Political Art

Size: 16x20

As California and other global regions get strict with water use, Phoebe Li sees an opportunity to speak about issues with wasted and often public and private preventable water use lifestyles. She creates a work that brings attention to not only our needs for this precious mineral resource, but the lack of accessibility and power dynamics. Phoebe creates a work that can be tangible and provocative as the bottle creates an element of familiarity in its reception. The work demonstrates our limited time and sometimes overlooked appreciation. The way most consume is also controversial with bottles often containing harmful chemicals. Phoebe brings the bottle to the forefront creating an art from a found object that has so much connotation of our lack of empathy, value, power, and control.

Many water politics issues, involving the availability, control, and distribution of water resources can have a negative outcome.  These dynamics shape power systems and lead to conflicts between different groups affected. As climate change, population growth, and unsustainable consumption intensify globally, critical issue for domestic and international stability are critical. Management rules, land ownership or rights, reservoirs depletion carry political and governance challenges. This becomes a contested arena that can determine protection, intervention and safeguard rights. Water infrastructure and funding can have an impact on addressing critical regions. 

Student Name: Yoyo Ren

Title: Art Soul

Work type: Oil on Canvas

Category:  Fine Art

Size: 22x24

This expressionistic artwork offers a glimpse of how dance and joy are viewed. At first glance, this seeming macabre paintings might misinterpret a darker meaning, but the total opposite is in view. It is a celebration of life. Through every death there is a new beginning. 

The skeletons are the most direct and universal symbols of death but in this work, they act as a flickering candle and represent our life and vitality and the fragility of human existence. Whether we end up in a non or creative field, the vanity of knowledge or creative pursuits that ultimately cannot stop the inevitability of death no matter who you are. 

According to Yoyo, “this artwork offers a powerful dual perspective on the human journey. Viewed from left to right, it tells the story of a soul awakening and growing, more expressive, and alive through the love of dance. From right to left, it reflects the story of life fading into death. Reminding us of the fleeting nature of time. The bright warm skeletons glowing against the dark background symbolize how movement, creativity, and passion can illuminate both body and soul. It speaks to healthy living as more than just physical wellness, it’s about embracing joy, purpose, and vitality while we can. “

Memento mori is an artistic theme that reminds the viewer of their mortality and the fleeting nature of human existence, with the purpose of inspiring a better, more meaningful life. The Latin phrase translates to "remember that you must die," and this tradition has appeared in art since antiquity, evolving from a religious call to piety to a more secular meditation on life. 

Student Name: Kendrick Lee

Title: House By the River

Work type:  marker render and ink and 3D foam board model

Category: Architecture 

Size: size 18x10

Kendrick has designed a residential house built hidden within a forest beside a river. This architecture home is designed to create a space that can be organically sound and a futuristic sensibility. The surrounding glass windows, spatial floor plan, optimal views, and seamless design of a crossing bridge interconnect the surrounding areas to the house. This cohesion gives it a harmony to the building’s foundation and its adjoining nature.

Just like Frank Loyd Wright notable "river homes", Kendrick evokes designs of other houses with a strong connection to a water system that include principles of organic architecture, blending modern design with a minimal simplicity, riverside setting and modernistic design approach. 

Kendrick’s additions include features of a spacious observatory and library with a double decker 1st and 2nd floor design. As we see in the early marker render, Kendrick considers how nature’s changing seasons and the natural habitat infuse the house to the site.

Student Name: Magdalene Gunawan

Title: Oppression

Work type:  Resin, fabric and paint 

Category:  Fine Art (political art)

Size: 16x20

Magdalene expresses a powerful message and medium to express advocated sentiments, challenge societal norms, and woman’s voices that are unheard or silenced to inspire social change. She puts herself in line with the feminist art movement, which emerged in the late 1960s and 1970s and continues to evolve today.  As she matured here with us conversations, interests and the gap in inequality in gender politics is what motivated her to create this artwork. As we conversed, she wanted to empower the viewer or make them contemplate our actions and views when it comes to supporting or not supporting woman’s views. She also explores identity. Moreso “intersectional identities”: In recent decades, feminist art has adopted an intersectional approach, acknowledging the interplay of gender with race, class, sexuality, and other aspects of identity.  She also learned of various histories and artists that have similar or other views and work type. 

Examples of influential artists and artworks such as Cindy Sherman, Barbara Kruger, Guerrilla Girls, Kara Walker, Faith Ringgold, Judy Chicago, Ana Mendieta, Mary Beth Edelson, Lynda Benglis, Martha Rosler, Kiki Smith, Yoko Onoe, Miriam Schapiro, Andre Fraser to name a few.

Student Name: Emily Wu

Title: Desire, Anger and  Loss

Work type: Illustration 

Category:  Oil on Canvas

Emily Wu’s painting shares a dark narrative that reflects the human journey of Desire, Anger and Loss. This hidden aspect to human nature and religious connotation in our quest to search for meaning. Though this work is depicted as a fantasy, it illustration still holds truths.

According to Emily: just like the three poisons that are the root of all beings' troubles, as mentioned in Buddhism - desire, anger and loss. The strong green light shining on the surrounding walls and eaves formed a strong prison, locking him in the grip of the dark side of humanity. And he had long been unable to tell whether it was the temptations of the outside world or the evil thoughts within that had trapped him. From the altar, the pig's head symbolizes desire and the snake symbolizes anger, gradually testing the base line of his sanity. The cold-eyed Buddha statue is solemn and serene, merely gazing at the man whose soul is entangled in desire, anger and loss, as if patiently waiting for the moment when he can return to his senses from the chaos. Obviously it is too late, his empty eyes and frantic expression symbolize that he is already immersed in the abyss of the hidden aspect of human nature, unable to extricate himself from it.

Student Name: Wendy Xu

Title: First time

Work: Painting-Oil on Canvas

Size: 36x48

“Dreamscape art” refers to artworks that depict dreamlike or surreal landscapes, often blurring the lines between reality and the imagination. These pieces frequently explore themes of the subconscious, fantasy, and the uncanny, drawing inspiration from dreams and are often attached to the surrealist movement.

This work done by Wendy Xu describes the meeting between her ‘dream-self” and her “real-self.  In this picture the two converge and meet for the first time. According to Wendy; ”The little me in my dreams feels frightened fleeing on a cat as comfort.” The checkerboard pattern beneath her feet serves to distinguish different paths and realms.  In this realm, everything is static and potential for possibilities. Other metaphors imagery is floating helping shape the landscape.

Student Name: Tiffany Kao

Title: untitled

Work type: Oil on canvas

Category:  Fine Art

Size: 11x14

Tiffany Kao’s painting and PTA reflections winner District 1 and the City of Rosemead Environment competitions, was inspired by a hypothetical look on how political decisions can impact generations.  A boy and potentially future astronaut are holding a rocket in a science museum.   In the background, museum workers are dismantling the exhibits and closing centers that benefit youth. Funding of these government resourced facilities can influence, inspire, and educate the larger audience with positive outlooks and long term.

In late 2018 there was a partial governmental shutdown. Impact of these nine federal departments and numerous independent agencies were impacted that largely was a disagreement over funding, including those for Homeland Security, Treasury, Agriculture, Interior, Commerce, Justice, State, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) among a few.  

The economic impact of The Congressional Budget Office estimated the shutdown cost the U.S. economy $11 billion, primarily due to a reduction in federal workers' spending caused by lost pay. The partial government shutdown in late 2018 was the which began on December 22, 2018, and lasted 35 days. It was the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, caused by a political stalemate.

Student Name: Jineni Mei

Title: untitled

Work type: Mixed media (Oil on canvas, wire, Styrofoam and cardboard)

Category: Illustration

Size:22x40

In a self-portrait that is experimenting through narrative and cultural identity, Jineni creates a mixed media artwork that is both playful and contemplative of a journey. She uses the bamboo depicting stages of her life. The bamboo symbolism conveys strength, flexibility, endurance, simplicity, and continuous growth in her life. The literal ability of the plant to bend without breaking and to grow with speed despite life’s setbacks is how Jineni sees her path with relationships and her memories. She learns from life lessons as bring good fortune, prosperity, harmony, and good health. 

Conversing with Jineni as we began brainstorming, she was very insistent on not having her likeness in the picture such as a traditional self-portrait, but rather something that could speak to various audiences. Reflecting on her identity she began by exploring what defines her beyond physical appearance in her personal journey. Visual symbology and an exploration of media made this project memorable and fun as she found a style that was complementary to her idea visually. Ultimately the bamboo played a key role in how she saw a traditional painting and how she was able to break away from the walls of the canvas yet stay formal. This resilience symbolizes the ability to adapt and cope with adversity., growth and longevity. Staying true to who she is, Jineni represents ideal virtues like integrity, modesty, and mental strength. 

(By Omar Gallegos，WCAAD Vice Principal and Director of Education)