Meet Skye Taniai | Contemporary Artist

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

Hi Skye, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I found my purpose as an artist when I realized I identify as an Asian American. For so long, I identified as Japanese and rejected Asian American for so long. One day it occurred to me that I own all the great history that has been left behind by my predecessors. Now I had a duty to fulfill- to continue telling the story of Asian America through visual art.

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’m a contemporary artist working in painting, digital collage, and video. In my work, I explore Asian American topics specific to being an immigrant. I’m trying to get to the nitty gritty of the topic. I see common related topics such as race, gender, and feminism.. I’m trying to explore further- topics such as assimilation, model minority, displacement, and resilience are what I’m interestted in. It is always a challenge to figure out how to convey these facts into a visual format. I am always researching and reading books. Right now I’m reading RISE: A pop history of Asian America from the nineties to now by Jeff Yang and Phil Yu, The Making of Asian America: A History by Erika Lee, Negotiating Bilingual and Bicultural Identities by Yasuko Kanno. I’m attracted to the endless possibilities of art. It is an addiction for sure. Art evolves as I evolve as a person. Being an artist is a lifestyle. When people look at my art, they see humor and playfulness but my day-to-day attitude toward art is serious. I will always make time for art. I can only work on other stuff when I have worked on art on any given day. I’m excited about my upcoming exhibiting opportunities this year. 21c Museum Hotel KC through XVERSO and my solo show titled “The Good Asian” in Burbank, LA through Office Space in spring, collaboration with an artist at Metagonia conference in Austria, and a two-person exhibition at Habitat Contemporary in Kansas City in the fall.

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?
In Kansas City, there are so many great varieties of restaurants. There is a new hip Korean restaurant called Chingu on Westport. Stop by for a boba next door. on the way back. Vietnamese restaurants and Vietnamese coffee at Cafe Caphe, and delicious cookies at Swoon all in the neighborhood of Columbus Park. Go see art at Sherry Leedy Contemporary, Curiouser Curiouser, Holsum Gallery, Habitat Contemporary, Kemper Museum, Plug Gallery, Leedy Voulkos, Nelson Atkins Museum.

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?
As artists, we can’t do it alone and are always surrounded by a great support system. I’m giving the shoutout to those who supported me along the way and continue to be an inspiration. Grandma Sue, Matt Ballou, Dwight Smith, XVERSO, Office Space, Kimi Kitada from Charlotte Street, all the professors taught me at SAIC.

Website: https://www.sumiretaniai.com

Instagram: @skyeatspaint