Isolation

jiawei deng

I make art; I make art to assert my individuality against a culture that values conformity. I grew up in Canton, China, in an environment where families hold societal productivity in high regard. Artistic creativity, at least for my family, does not fall into the category of “societally productive,” and it, therefore, is not seen as a worthy undertaking maybe as a hobby but certainly not viable as a future path. Therefore, I was very much alone in my art-making career, so my artworks usually end up taking a critical view on social, political, and cultural aspects. In my concentration work, I am making photos to show loneliness through the limited color palette, the absence of the human figure, and the interaction between everyday objects.  My thesis project is visualizing isolation, depression, and anxiety through the interaction of people and objects.

JIAWEI DENG is a senior at the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities. She is from Canton, China and currently resides in South Carolina, US. She received three silver keys and two Honorable Mentions in the 2017 Scholastic Art Awards. Her work was also exhibited at Converse College, Greenville Technical College, Drexel University, and Cleveland Institute of Art High School Juries Exhibition contest in 2017. Jiawei is also a finalist in Photographer's Forum Photography Contest and ArtField Jr. in Lake City, South Carolina Art Festival. Next year she will be attending Clemson University for a BA degree in Psychology with a double major degree BFA in studio art.