Meet Lejin Fan | Content Creator & Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lejin Fan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lejin, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I was born and raised in Xiamen, China, it’s a peaceful coastal city with good food, beautiful scenery, and vibrant culture. However, it’s a very small city so I don’t have much access to bigger shows and events, so I spent a lot of time on the internet instead. I started to watch a lot of anime and became a big fan of K-pop in early elementary school, they’re huge influences for me even now. Then I started to get into social media at around 15 and I moved between China, the US, and the UK later. My bond with the internet and virtual pop cultures, my experience with the ever-changing landscape around me, and my passion for experimenting art with technology which was found later in my academic journey all together impact my career right now in fashion and art deeply.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I was always passionate about exploring various intersections of art with other disciplines and realized my interest and value in a few programming classes in the Engineering school a few years ago. I am deeply curious about the synergy between art and technology and the potential of creative technology to redefine art, culture, and human expression. This motivates me to study independently different art+technology techniques such as digital art, video game development, and virtual reality.
I’ve also been thinking of combining my fashion content creation career with art, so I helped my friend start a J-fashion boutique in London called cucurucu (@cucurucu____) a few months ago. In here we’re able to incorporate our art practices to make creative and fun campaigns! v(^∀^*)

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’ll recommend some spots in NYC as I’m here when doing this interview-  
Food: Take a walk in Chinatown Manhattan for cheap and delicious food and snacks, don’t forget to bring cash… After that, you can go to the East Village area for some of the best dessert places while walking off the food.
Places: Botanical Garden, MoMA, Korean Spa, Broadway Show, Flea markets/Pop-ups, and any skyscraper observation deck at sunset, I also like to take the train north for a hike!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Really big shoutout to my family especially my parents. Growing up back home I was a rebellious kid having very bad relationships with them, it wasn’t until when I left for another country I understood that they’re the most important people in my life. Their belief in me has been a constant source of motivation and I deeply appreciate their support all the way. Thank you Mom and Dad (´｡• ᵕ •｡`) ♡

Website: https://www.lejinfan.com/

Instagram: @lejinfan (https://www.instagram.com/lejinfan/)

Other: TikTok: @lejinfan (https://www.tiktok.com/@lejinfan)