Crossing Boundaries

The Museum of Chinese in America has an upcoming exhibit featuring 12 contemporary Chinese artists who work in New York. "Crossing Boundaries" is the second of three in a series, and runs through Jan. 4.

Under where?

"Under the Glass Bell, A Dream" is a photo show by New York artist Grace Kim. It opens tonight at Brooklyn's Melanie Flood Projects. The title is plucked from Anaïs Nin’s short story, “Under a Glass Bell.” The black and white series depicts just-emptied beds and rooms at love hotels in Seoul, South Korea.

"Lovers are known to use the hotels for secret affairs," Kim explains on her Web site. "I photograph the beds just after they have departed. My photographs are personal reflections on the passage of time and the ephemeral nature of love."

Andrew Mau

Andrew Mau is a Chinese American designer who grew up in Honolulu. At 22, he’s a recent graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design (where he focused on furniture design) and Punahou School (the high school that President Barack Obama also attended).

Mau talked to Creative Cat about his work and aspirations. Read on!



How did you get into art?
My interest in art/creative pursuits began at a very early age. My humble beginning with Play-Doh and crayons led to ceramic classes at the age of 9, and the pursuit of anything creative during my high school years. I have an interest in teaching and learning as much as possible, and have ventured into jewelry, glass blowing and casting, ceramics, essentially anything three-dimensional.

What do you want to do now that you've graduated?
Now that I've graduated, I would love to continue designing. I am looking for work in New York City, and hope to find it soon. Ideally, I would be designing for a large company for now, but would love to own my own design firm/company in the future.

What's your favorite piece that you have created so far? Why?
I hardly have favorite anythings in general. I don't have a favorite color or a favorite designer. I tend to find some pieces I've done significant or important to my growth, while not necessarily my favorites. My piece PERCH, the porcelain bowl with feathers that was shown at ICFF in NYC this May has had the most press, and drawn the most attention, however I feel as though it does not demonstrate the clean design that I am more attracted to. I enjoy ELLIPSE (the table for John Maeda) and SLIM VESSEL, the bent laminated wood vessels that won the 2009 Niche Student Award, because they both demonstrate a simplicity that I strive for.

What's your biggest design pet peeve?
My biggest design pet peeve is the mass of uninformed "green" products. Bamboo is a great resource, yes, however, the processing and glue it needs to be used as a planar material, seems to outweigh the "ease" of this material. I think the most "green" thing we can do is invest in quality, and change our disposable lifestyle. Buying used or vintage pieces instead of new pieces from IKEA would decrease waste period.

What's your favorite trend that's happening now?
I don't really have a favorite trend. (As I mentioned before, I'm not a type for favorites). I enjoy mixing materials and using them effectively, and can most appreciate the direct application of materials in their most effective solutions. I design like an engineer, understanding each materials properties and using them effectively in this sense. I would never design something out of wood, just because I could, I would much rather consider a material that would be appropriate for the construction of that particular design.

What are your five favorite Web sites?
I like facebook, dislike twitter. I play Settlers of Catan online. I have many design websites that I enjoy, but none worth mentioning in the top five. I am rarely online, and enjoy the outdoors much more. I love Trendy Blanks for affordable clothing, and also enjoy dumb video clips on YouTube.

Sunnyside up

Illustrations by Cathie Urushibata are oh-so-cheerful. Maybe it’s her Southern California upbringing. Her illustrations are charming.

A Japanese American Nisei, Urushibata moved east to attend grad school at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. She has called Manhattan home since then, living in Chinatown and working in the Flatiron district.

Urushibata currently works at a boutique agency, called 3SL Creative, doing design and illustration. “When I'm not doing something creative, you can always find me snacking on something or looking for a new restaurant to try,” she told me recently.

Urushibata is a lady after my own heart: For her, inspiration comes by way of vintage flea market finds. “I really admire good vintage design,” she said. “The fact that it may be 40 years old and aesthetically it still looks good, you know you did something right.”

She’s also a bit enamored with the color navy. Two recent vintage handbag purchases were a nice navy blue, as was a dress she wore to a friend’s wedding. “I've always been drawn to blue tones,” she said. “It just has a calming affect and it reminds me of the beach.”

Urushibata sells pins of her art on Etsy.

A night — or two — at the museum

The new location of The Museum of Chinese in America just opened last month at 215 Centre Street in New York City. Architect and designer Maya Lin is responsible for the Manhattan building. (She also designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, in Washington, D.C.)

It looks like there's lots to see, but I'm particularly interested in the exhibit on Hazel Ying Lee, an Oregonian and aviator who flew during the 1930s and 40s. She even flew fighter plans for the U.S. Army. (Plus, she wore kickin' boots.) How cool is that? Lee died young, at 33, but apparently you can learn about her life through photos, letters and memorabilia at the MOCA.




Upcoming events at the museum include The 32nd Asian American International Film Festival and a grand opening celebration on Sept. 22.

Admission is free on Thursdays, thanks to Target. Let me know if you check it out.