10 Questions with Ashling (Yaxin) Tu

Ashling (Yaxin) Tu is an Illustrator, Designer, and sculptor who graduated from MICA (Maryland Institute College of Arts). As an international Artist from China who attended school in the US at the age of 14, Ashling has benefited from a multicultural environment. She is always looking for inspirations from daily life and turning them into heartwarming artworks. Her works have been nominated in international competitions throughout the years, such as Scholastic art and the 3x3 international award.
Ashling primarily works on a digital pad for 2d arts, which is easy for her to carry around in her backpack while traveling. Her 3d sculptures are, in contrast, mainly built from natural materials and existing objects she picks up on the street. As a young artist born in the 21st century, Ashling believes that both reality and the digital world are as important in the current human society. Using both traditional craftsmanship and digital design methods, she reflects her vision and feeling of the modern world's actualities.

www.ashlingtu.com | @ashlingtu_art

ARTIST STATEMENT

Ashling Tu loves to find intimacy within everyday life. Learning from her favorite Chinese poet Juyi Bai, Ashling intended to make her works accessible to everyone. She uses a young anonymous teenage girl as her main character to observe the world around her. Ashling's imagery focuses on the relationships of an individual towards nature, other people, and self in contemporary society. Her works are easy to understand without complex explanations, reminding the audiences to re-appreciate the life we live in.

Ashling often finds the real art to be the unintentional links created by life and mother nature. While she mainly uses 2d painting to capture specific moments of time, Ashling also builds 3d mini sculptures by utilizing things she collects on streets to create an immersive experience in a minimal space. What might at first seem regular often reveals connections to others upon closer attention. Ashling seeks to provide healing energy to the audience and strives to use her work to brighten up others.

INTERVIEW

First of all, introduce yourself to our readers. How would you define yourself as an artist? What makes you unique? 

Growing up as a kid full of imagination, I never separated the art aspect from a human's everyday life. I don't define myself as different from others who don't consider themselves "artists." I tend to utilize my art skills to communicate and link the viewers together. I feel lucky to be a visual artist since it is the most direct and universal way to express thoughts and feelings. If I have to name one unique thing, I often think of myself as a bridge that collects pieces within everyone's life and connects them back to the viewers.

You moved from China to the USA at a very young age. How was this move beneficial to your art? 

As I mentioned in my bio, I moved to the USA at 14. Moving away from my family, friends, and culture with which I am familiar has affected my way of thinking. During high school, I spent more time observing the differences and finding common grounds in human societies within different cultural aspects. It led me to something I am excited about doing as a long-time goal, not only limited to art making but also how I treat others. Back in China, my focus was solely on anime, drawing characters, and making up fantasy stories. However, after moving to the US (and probably part of it is just me growing up), I started spending more time out of my comfort "imaginary bubble," and I began to find ways to deliver energy to others through my work. In other words, finding a "universal language."

Do you think you are more influenced now by Chinese or American culture? Did you find a balance between the two?

I would say both cultures have influenced me greatly. As a rising young artist from the 21st century, I am lucky enough to be benefited from the network information age. Living in the United States has encouraged me to find my voice and become a solid individual figure. While rooting in China also allows me to set myself aside and look at the broader picture as a whole. I would never comment if one is ever more significant than the other. I let myself flow with my feelings rather than trying to unify two different cultures at once. 

In your work, you use the figure of an anonymous teenage girl, which acts as the protagonist. How much of yourself can we read in this girl? And who else influenced you in creating this character? 

I tend not to give a name to this anonymous girl but rather give more space for the viewer to fill in their spot along with her. Most of myself is in this girl, and so are the other people who share similar emotions and experiences. Whenever a person comments on my art and my character to be somewhat "regular" and could be "anyone," it makes me happy. Because that is exactly I am intended. This girl character was a combination of my friends and me and all the beautiful moments I experienced with them. (PS. The cat is just my dream, I am allergic to cats, and I have an imaginary cat in my arts.

In your statement, you quote the Chinese poet Juyi Bai as one of your sources of inspiration. Do you have any other?

Here's another poem by Iain s. Thomas, From the book "the truth of you":

I don't think there's anyone else out there who knows what it feels like to be me.

But maybe if I crumple part of myself 
Into a little ball
And throw it out of the car,
Someone will pick it up one day and say,

"This is mine." 

My inspirations are primarily drawn from my everyday life. I find natural beauty to be the little things that are heartwarming.

Let's talk about the subject of your works. What is your idea behind that, and what messages are you trying to convey?

This specific series of works (That is, "soft corner," the 3d sculptures, and "Between here & now," the 2d art series) is a mental therapy experiment. My work is about taking in anxieties and relieving them through my arts. I intend to deliver the healing power to the audience through my works and to remind them to take a break from their stresses and revisit their soft corners.

You use both digital and traditional techniques. Is there anything else you would like to experiment with?

Oh, there's so much more! Rather than sticking with the techniques, the next thing I would love to experiment with is to collaborate with other people that share a similar vibe/ goal with me. As much as I enjoy doing little heartwarming art on my own, I feel like it is about time to stop being all "selfish" about my ideas, and I would love to engage my aspects into a greater picture.
As for new techniques, I am currently learning 3d digital software. I often find some gaps between my traditional 3d sculptures and my 2d illustrations. I hope by entering the digital 3d world, I can finally combine my two abilities to create something even more fun!

What do you think of digital exhibitions and presentations? Have you participated in any, or are you into more traditional ways of presenting your work, like physical exhibitions in galleries and museums? 

I think digital exhibitions have a very high potential in our current world. During the pandemic year, I attended several digital exhibitions. It is nice that an artist's work can be spread wider to their potential audience. On the other hand, I found digital exhibitions still at an early age and sometimes lack some discipline and organization. Face-to-face interaction between the viewer and artist is always more satisfying than a cold and simple "like" button on a plain site. In other words, I tend to receive less feedback and actual interactions with my audience on digital exhibition platforms. I feel like it is similar to the "e-book will never replace the actual weight of a physical book" kind of standpoint. That being said, I am glad to find Al- tiba 9 to be a few of the online artist sites that are highly organized and are doing such an amazing job of featuring artists. I hope in the future, there will be more chances open to artists like me to show our works and thoughts to the greater world.

What do you hope to accomplish this year, both in terms of career goals and personal life? 

Since I am still at the very beginning of my career, I haven't settled on one single path yet. I hope I can try out different career paths and find something that I am truly passionate about. My current main focus is on editorial and book illustrations. I want to let myself out of my comfort zone. I want to think and create things that can affect the world, something that can lead others to laughter and joy.

Finally, what are you working on right now? Any new projects you would like to share with our readers?

I am starting on a couple of new project series. One of them that I am most excited about is a Children's picture book. As I mentioned in the previous questions, I want to try out different targeting groups. Recently I found picture books amusing because they often hold heartwarming narrations and colorful illustrations. After reading through a couple of books, I realize they are not "childish" at all, and the adults can learn life-benefiting lessons in the stories as well. I am also challenging myself by not having a human character in my new story. This upcoming book is about a little bunny who was born missing a leg yet still has a great passion for hopping. I hope through this story, everyone who is missing their "privilege" can gain something beneficial from this little bunny.