Meet Kelly Zhong | Artist

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

Hi Kelly, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
Work life balance was always a struggle for me until recent years. Even as a practicing artist, I have a 9-5 job. Although I am fortunate enough to be still working my full-time job in the arts, I always felt like after I came home, I had to get back on the grind again to draw or come up with ideas for new projects. I am also super passionate about everything I do so it can be difficult to stop and relax when there are a million ideas in your head that you want to carry out or you have deadlines coming up that you need to meet. I think this lack of balance led to me burning out and there was a period of time where I felt creatively drained. It took a while for me to realize this and once I did, we were hit with the pandemic. Fortunately, the lockdown actually helped to reset my balance in many ways as I was not working my full-time job. It allowed me to focus more on my creative projects and really think about the chapter in my life. I had gotten into graduate school right before the height of the pandemic and I was debating whether or not to pursue another degree. However, during the lockdown, I was really able to slow down and evaluate my passions and what I wanted to do next once we were able to sort of live our lives again. I realized I wanted to continue my career as a practicing artist, but I also wanted to go back to school and further my education. I am really glad I made this decision because through school, I was able to restart my creativity and I was able to meet so many new people in the art field.

Through the pandemic, I was also able to make more time for myself outside of work and my art practice. I think being stuck at home actually motivated me to make a list of all the activities I wanted to do, things I wanted to learn, and places I wanted to visit after we were able to go out again. I now have a have a healthier relationship with my work life and I am slowly working through that list of all the things I wanted to do!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve always had a passion for the arts and growing up, it was an avenue I knew I wanted to pursue. However, I do not think I would be here today without the support from my parents. Coming from an Asian immigrant family, a career in the arts is not considered traditionally “safe” nor “financially secure.” Yet, my parents encouraged me to pursue my passion and they pushed me to continue with my art practice. They even supported my decision to apply for art colleges after high school! I ultimately obtained my Bachelor of Fine Arts, summa cum laude, from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and I just received my Master of Arts in museum studies from New York University.

Being an artist is not easy at times and I think it will always be a challenge getting your artwork out there. You will most likely face multiple rejections when you first start to submit your work for exhibitions or opportunities. It was definitely disheartening at times when I first started applying for exhibitions after graduation and I kept receiving rejection after rejection. It made me feel like my work was not good enough and there were moments where I questioned myself and my abilities. However, what kept me going was the encouragement from my family and friends and my love for the arts. I think what also helped me overcome these rejections were taking breaks and also diving into other avenues I was interested in such as writing and the more academic side of fine arts. I am also interested in the museum world and I decided to delve into everything that goes into presenting exhibition and the operational side of an institution. Today, I am lucky to have both the creative skill sets I gathered from my art practice but also the important research skills I gained through my master’s degree and professional experience. In addition to drawing, I am strengthening my experience as a writer. I am co-writing a forthcoming book on 15 contemporary Latin American visual artists. I have really enjoyed interviewing all the artists in the publication and I cannot wait for the book to be published!

In my art practice, my drawings explore the role of relationships and how they manifest within ourselves and others. I predominantly draw in a realistic style, but I often try to create compositions that will elicit uncanny feelings for viewers. I also think of my drawings as informal self-portraits – compositions that reflect parts of myself without ever showing any actual facial features. Instead, I utilize body language to convey various mental states and actions. From my work, I invite my audience to reflect on similar experiences and cast their own perspectives on the narrative I depicted. I want people to feel intrigued and maybe uncomfortable by what they see in front of them.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My friends and I all love coffee so I would definitely first take them to grab a cup at one of my favorite places such as MARU coffee or Boxx Coffee Roasters. We will then visit an art museum such as LACMA, Hammer, or The Broad. There are always great exhibitions to see at these museums and you cannot miss out on taking a picture in front of Chris Burden’s “Urban Light” installation outside LACMA. Another great museum right next door that I would take my friends to is the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. The top of the building is a dome, and you get a great view of the city! If museums aren’t their thing and they want to hop around a bit more, I would take them to first get brunch around Melrose and then shop around the area. If they are willing to come with me to see some art, we would visit galleries instead such as Hauser & Wirth in the arts district. These galleries are conveniently located next to Little Tokyo where we would grab dinner and I will end the day by taking them to a rooftop bar in DTLA for some drinks.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to dedicate my shoutout to my parents for always supporting me throughout the years. I also want to thank my first art mentor for guiding me through my art practice when I first started drawing and applying for art school. I learned so much from him and I carry many the skills I learned to this day.

Website: https://www.behance.net/KellyZhong

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/k.zhongg.jpg/