Asian artists to know in the world of NFTs
To all our American friends, we can’t help with Asian hate crimes. We can’t fix the system or take back what one man with a gun is capable of doing. However, we can celebrate our Asian (and Asian-American) friends who could probably use a little elevation at a time like this.
Just like ma po tofu, sushi, and kimchi make the bland culinary cuisine of the West more interesting and add to our always-changing culture. These artists are bringing their own unique perspectives to the art world to create a more diverse, visually dynamic, art world.
Curry Sieong Tian
https://superrare.co/currytian
Started as a Student Academy Award Winner, los Angeles-based filmmaker Curry Tian has held various roles including 3d motion designer, concept/digital artist, illustrator, animator, photographer, creative director at studios internationally. Born and raised in China, she is aiming to bridge the gap between eastern and western culture, video art and film, expanding beyond into 3d motion graphic and alternative modes of storytelling.
Curry is especially relevant today. Being born and raised in China, she’s specifically trying to figure out how the East and West collide through her visual art. She currently has three pieces on SuperRare, two of which sold for over $4,000 USD.
We love the rich color palettes and sense of balance in her pieces. Specifically Supreme Pole 01 and Supreme Pole 02, which would complement each other perfectly as a set.
Shin Oh
https://makersplace.com/ohvoxel/
Shin Oh is a Voxel Artist from Malaysia.
Her voxel creation mainly portrays melancholy as an aesthetic emotion — solitude, isolation, loneliness and emptiness.
All of her creations speak human experience.
She hopes that, through her creation, people can find resonance and comfort, practice self-care/self-love while caring for others.
Normally we don’t share voxel pieces as they usually falls outside of our art-specific interest. This category of pieces is usually recognizable by their stand alone, lego-like rooms floating on a plain background (of which Shin has made and sold two). However, Shin Oh is truly an artist. The majority of her creations step outside of the normal, singular room composition and make us feel everything from loneliness to calm, but more than anything else, they keep bringing us back to a single, common, human thread: empathy.
Only one of this Malaysian artist’s pieces are still available, so you’d have to get bidding to get one.
Takahiro Suganuma
https://makersplace.com/takahirosuganuma/
Takahiro Suganuma is a Tokyo based illustrator. He expresses a quiet atmosphere with soft lines and calm color. His work has appeared on advertising, education, and publications including The World Today, the Royal College of Physicians and The Architectural Review. He illustrated his first picture book ‘When Grandma was a Child’ published by Iwasaki Shoten. This book illustrated landscape of 1960’s Japan.
Takahiro has a distinctly Japanese style to his art with light, washed, colors and organically flowing lines. In general, they give the viewer a sense of calm and ease.
We wanted to make sure we gave this Tokyo based illustrator a shout out considering his work is a more affordable alternative to the artists listed above.
These are just three unique voices in a sea of artists from many countries, cultures, and backgrounds. Every one brings their own perspective and style to the platform. Like the world in general, we hope to continue seeing a place for these views, and others, to be expressed and appreciated on a wider scale.
NOTES
Before ending this piece, I’d like to make a brief statement about using Asian imagery and art by people not of the culture they are depicting.
When researching this piece, I had to weed through hundreds of images by Western artists. Some where beautifully done illustrations using iconic Chinese and Japanese locations or images that brought a new perspective or idea to the platform. However, there were two troubling categories. One was the directly stolen ancient art from Chinese and Southeast Asian countries being sold by people who do not own the pieces, nor have any tie to them. Included were photos of painted panels, scenes from the Ramayana, and statues of dragons and Gods from various regions. Taking what is essentially a product photo (good lighting, straight on image with a plain background and no environmentally contest that have no additional embellishments or edits) and selling it as your own is not art. It’s theft. Just because the artist died 1,000 years ago, doesn’t make it free game.
Secondly, Buddha and other religious symbols are just that: religious. If you are an artist reading this who would like to use an image of Buddha, Ganesh, Jesus, etc. and do not know the religious and cultural connotations of those icons, please replace them accordingly. Buddha is not a symbol of Thailand. He is a religious figure of a popular world religion/philosophy who is widely revered in many parts of the world. Hindu Gods are not logos for India. They are Gods. Using revered images in a nuanced manner to express a political, religious, or cultural point of view is one of the most controversial and, some would argue, successful, uses of art. Using these images without any understanding or point is just plain lazy.
Don’t be lazy.
