Meet Faith Ong | Concept Artist

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

Hi Faith, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born and raised in Singapore, been there all my life before I set foot here in LA! Growing up, I never quite felt like I fit in. I had a pretty hard time making friends at school and found myself making excuses to stay at home to either play video games or scribble in my sketchbook. I eventually ended up jumping into the world of online friendships around the age of 13, which introduced me to tons of artists around the globe. I really look back at that time fondly as I made lots of friends that encouraged me and created a really fun environment for me to express myself as a budding artist. Moving out here to LA was definitely much easier knowing I had friends around!

I was also really blessed to have a close relationship with my parents. They really exemplified God’s love in my life and always supported me, even if they were a little shocked when I chose to fully pursue concept art as a career. I’m always grateful for their wisdom and love that moulded me into who I am today!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I currently work as a freelance concept designer while I complete my degree at Art Center College of Design! I mainly work with designing environments and anything to do with color and light.

It took me a while to fully grasp what made my voice truly mine, but I think now I can characterize it by a sort of childlike curiosity of the world around me. Constantly traveling between L.A. and Singapore has allowed me to really be attuned to each city’s distinct flavor and energy– the soundscape, colors and even the feeling of the sunsets! There can be so many stories hidden within the seemingly mundane things. I think that’s something that really inspires me and I always try to push myself in my personal projects to venture into the unknown, to come back with a newfound appreciation for something that might often get overlooked.

In terms of my journey, it definitely was tough in the beginning. Stepping into art college with peers that significantly outclassed me in skill and experience was a hard pill to swallow. On hindsight, I think it helped me a lot more than I thought! Learning how to be humble and persevere through the steep learning curves helped me to be more resilient and also flexible.
At the end of the day, I think it was important for me to explore myself to find the essence of what I enjoyed balanced with a strategic view on what would be sustainable as a long term career. I also found it much healthier to know when to let go of certain expectations and embrace the crazy changes life can bring.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Something I really love about being in LA is that we’ve always managed to enjoy the outdoors free of the humid tropical heat. On that note, I’d definitely bring someone to go see the beautiful curation of plants at the Huntington Gardens! There’s also a small quaint little park called the Arlington Gardens in Pasadena that would be lovely to have a picnic at too! Hiking is definitely something that I would recommend too, I really enjoyed walking around the creeks at the Switzer Fall Trail specifically.

I also feel super strongly about the Graffiti and street art scene here and really feel like it’s super integral to bringing LA to life. I would definitely recommend a trip down to the Enox Graffiti Railroad Yard to see some cool stuff!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First up, I have to say it was my dad that first inspired me as early as I remember. My earliest memory was him doodling Disney Princesses to entertain me as a child and I think seeing those drawings materialize on paper really encouraged me to do the same.

Secondly, I really have to give credit to my wonderful partner, Stephen Wang. Being an artist as well, he really empathized and understood everything I went through. He never failed to encourage me while I was at my lowest and always reminded me to stay true to my artistic voice, he played a huge part in helping me be comfortable in my own shoes, as an artist and as a person!

I also really wanted to shout out my mentors that have helped me along the way! Namely Eric Ng and Jacinda Chew(whom I met through the AIAS foundation). They’ve challenged me in ways that really helped me to grow and mature in my thinking. Really couldn’t have done it without them!

Website: https://www.lursland.com/

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Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/faith-ongxy

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_lursland