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

Hi Hua, how do you think about risk?
Facing new risks always presents new opportunities to test my current skill set and improve myself afterward. Keep learning from every risk could broaden my recognition, no matter if I succeed or fail because of it. Never stop facing risks is one of the keys to keeping up with the changes in the industry.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I always love topics like history, politics, and public affairs, so I’m naturally drawn to illustration, especially editorial illustration. But this is a branch of the illustration market that’s hard to get into. I failed multiple times in the past, but I never gave up. It’s impossible to say I never thought about quitting this route, yet I always get myself back and find new solutions and help from various sources. My goal is to become one of the successful editorial illustrators even though I know the journey would be full of challenges.

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’m always a foodie, being curious about cuisines from different cultural backgrounds! I have a collection of worth-visiting restaurants in my Google map, and I’ll for sure come up with a good plan during my friends’ travel.

Definitely go to some Chinese and Vietnamese restaurants in the Bay Area, LA, and New York City while viewing different urban environments. Trying out Mexican food is also a must in California, especially those stalls on the street.

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?
I want to shout out to my girlfriend, Xiangyi Ji, and my cat, Teddy, who are always my most important motivators to be better and support me through tough times.
Also, my friend Jiaxing Yang. Xintong Liu, Jieru Tang, my mentor Charles Hively from 3×3 mag, my supervisor at Slate Magazine, Ivylise Simones, and my agent Jodie Hein from Rapp Art.

Website: https://www.huayeart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/huayeart

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/huay3

Image Credits
Illustration by Hua Ye

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