Julia Wong
November 2022 AiR
Julia Wong (she/her) is a Chinese diasporic arts and culture worker on the unceded lands of the Unceded Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) territories. She graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a focus on Visual Arts and English Literature. She now works in program administration at a non-profit serving SRO tenants in the Downtown Eastside and Chinatown. She is interested in art as a form of communication, as a site for disruption, and a place for exploring futurities. Her artistic concerns have included the intersection of craft and labour, liminal spaces, and regeneration.
Instagram: @julialwong
Image courtesy of the artist in their residency studio, 2022
The Similkameen Artist Residency gave me a welcome reprieve to city life which was instrumental in providing time and space to ground my artistic practice.
With little distraction, it was much easier to get into a rhythm of focused research and experimentation in my studio space. Much of my artistic interests lately have been revolved around decay and the possibility for regeneration—and experiencing the seasons change, and the first snow fall over the Similkameen Valley seemed fitting.
The proximity to the mountains, and resiliency of foliage through the snow never failed to amaze me. I also very much enjoyed visiting all the fruit stands and cooking with all the local produce. Upon finding a gelatin mold at the local antique store, Yasmine (one of the other residents) and I decided to try our hand at making an aspic. Inspired by ideas of preservation, a little lo-fi video collaboration was born from our time together at the loghouse.
Julia Wong
Studio image courtesy of the artist, 2022
Ceramic experiment with found mold
research station
research references
scenic shot taken from Klippers Marketplace
shot of aspic, made for 'preserve' (collaborative work in progress with Yasmine Whaley-Kalaora)
artist Julia Wong (pictured) exploring the environment around the SAR Loghouse