Celebrating Asian Heritage Through Photography

As a photographer, Andrew’s creative process begins by asking “why?”

“‘Why am I on this Earth?’” he wonders. “‘What is the history of my parents immigrating to the United States from China? Why do I like or dislike the things I do? Why am I the way that I am?’ Attempting to figure out the answers to my curiosities usually leads to scenes and images in my head seeking to tell this story.”

Many of these questions relate to Andrew’s experiences growing up Asian American in a predominantly white suburb. When he was younger, he rarely got the chance to see Asian people on TV; in films, magazines, and books; or even within his everyday life. Now he wants the images he creates to connect with and reassure that version of his younger self.

Now at NYU, Andrew experiments and searches for inspiration as he pursues this goal. Professor Shelley Rice and her class Social History of Photography have been instrumental to Andrew’s artistic growth. He’s also taken advantage of other resources available to NYU students like state-of-the-art camera and lighting equipment, studio spaces, visiting artist lectures, and exhibitions.

Andrew views photography as a way to uplift, empower, and challenge stereotypes about Asian people.

“With their realism, photographs communicate ideas to a present-day visual society immediately in a way that is undeniable,” he explains. “But the most important thing I love about photography as an art form is that photos, and especially portraits, have the power of representation.”

He looks to Frederick Douglass as inspiration for what photography can achieve. Douglass was the most photographed man of the 19th century. His self-portraits show wisdom, strength, and fashionability, harnessing the power of image-making for societal change.

“The power of big fashion magazines such as Vogue, Elle, and Harper’s Bazaar lies in their role as makers of culture and history in our society,” Andrew says. “I strive to have my work published in major fashion magazines as well as to do commercial photography. I want to normalize diversity and visualize the struggles Asians have experienced while also striving to create utopias where these stereotypes don’t exist.”

Along the way he’ll remember to appreciate what he has achieved so far. “The competitiveness of New York City and NYU has humbled me and made me realize that I am very privileged and should be grateful to be in these spaces as an Asian kid from Connecticut,” he says. “Overall, I am really grateful for the resources and community that NYU has provided me.”