Where Do I Come From? What Am I? Where Am I Going?
These are the questions that occupy my thoughts, the good old questions that embed in the human mind like a source code. We might not pace around the study and ponder all night like the ancient philosophers, but they are always in the back of our heads. They determine our wants and needs, and they drive our everyday behaviors.
French Post-Impressionist Artist Paul Gauguin dissects these questions in his famous painting Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? Pouring his spiritual journey in Tahiti in this one final painting explores the artist’s understanding of the cycle of life. Women in the painting depict the existence in our lives from childhood to middle age, to adulthood, and the complex changes that we go through during the process. The artists supposedly use the blue background emitting an omniscient aura to represent the beyond.
I found myself staring into this soul-searching painting, conversing with the artist for a glimpse of an answer. The answer to everything. But it starts with me.
Where Do I Come From?
I spent my childhood on a peaceful island in the pacific just like one in the painting, before moving to the biggest metropolitan city in central China. The tropical weather and welcoming spirit shaped my lively and sociable nature. Yet the coconut-filled childhood to fast-paced city life transition created that chill but goal-getter combo. It also paved way for my solo journey from the age of 15 to explore and study in the United States to this day. From one city to another, the curiosity of culture and the human mind direct my next destination, looking for my version of the truth like a true city nomad.
What Am I?
The pursuit of knowledge and joy in life has been my best companion along the way. Two (and one on the way) diplomas later, I found myself in the center of New York City. Years of studio art training and academic pursuits in business studies and social science formed who I am. The unique composition of Roxanne is my creative intuition complimenting studious analytics. New York City, with all its diversity and inclusion, is exactly where I belong.
“If you can make it here you can make it anywhere,” they said. But for me it’s not about “making it”, but the gathering of people and things you’d never put together. It’s the ultimate social experiment and ideal testing ground. As a marketer, here I can find a piece of every demographic and a sounding board to put all my ideas in context.
Where Am I Going?
In the film Roxanne Jiang, the plot line is constantly climaxing. You can always look forward for more existing things to come. I firmly believe that marketers are social scientists but also artists. We not only shape purchasing decisions but also influence opinion and behavioral trends. So for every analytics we conduct, every campaign we push, we drop a stone in the pond that ripples one after another.
“Thinking is trying to think the unthinkable: thinking the thinkable is not worth the effort.” — Hélène Cixous
Is my favorite quote from the French philosopher. In a post-modernist society, we create our own meaning and understanding of the world. I sought my mission to always debate the status quo and seek meaning this seemingly chaotic world. Because who we are and how we think shape our behaviors exert influence on others. I wish for the message I put out in this world to be striking, and never thought before.
So tune in to my voice. For what I have to say, about marketing, art, culture, and the world we live in.
