Student Sey Yang captures Asian American queer identity through camera lens
Sey Yang is a second year Art major. Their film photography considers aspects of their own identity as well as their subjects’ backgrounds, often culminating in projects that seek to explore the queer Asian American experience.
"Through the lens of Sey Yang lies an intimate experience with the past and present.
The second-year art student utilizes film photography to create personal pieces that aim to place authenticity, identity and interconnectedness at their center by fostering an in-depth understanding of their subjects. With their work in photography and other visual art forms such as painting, Yang said they try to bridge connections from aspects of their own identity to the past and present by taking influence from historical elements.
“I really like looking at Chinese history and icons during that time and appropriating them into the Asian American queer experience,” Yang said. “I like taking references to revolutionary history or historical figures or even the past art movements and reinterpreting them into the current sociopolitical context that is affecting our lives today.”
Initially practicing creative writing as a form of emotional release, Yang said they shifted to photography in middle school after finding that visual arts allowed a wider range of expression. In their transition to film photography, Yang said their changing goals as an artist and the expensive nature of each shot when using film altered their creative process. Now, Yang said their subjects are most often those they share a close relationship with to allow for pieces that possess an in-depth understanding of the photographed individual." — Graciana Paxton, May 15, 2022
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Daily Bruin website.
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