We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shirley Su a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Shirley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

My family always valued kindness, patience, and persistence. This made me feel nostalgic and remember what my family taught me when I was small. They always believe the best way to navigate through life is to become water. This way, you will be able to face issues in your life with a cool head instead of with heated emotions. With that philosophy, you can also discover solutions others cannot see, instead of becoming a part of the problem.

I realized that to make it in the creative field will take some time, unlike many who believe it can be achieved overnight. Of course there are a few lucky ones who can skyrocket very quickly, however I was not one of them. It took me a long time to gain experience as an illustrator and gain trust from clients and I will continue to do so. Again, I believe patience is an underrated currency that many have underestimated this century.

Shirley, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

It all started in the mid 2000s when fellow creators and I decided to publish independent serialized comic magazines without knowing anything about the business side. It was like jumping into the ocean without knowing how to swim, however along the way, we all learned how. From these publications, we attracted a number of publishers and clients who would eventually hire us for contracted projects. After a number of years, I figured it was time to step away from the gang and go into the wild on my own. Some of you may think that maybe I got into this business by accident, and I think you may be right.

I always love to collaborate with clients in solving their visual problems. Most often than not, they will find me either online or offline, inform me of their needs and then we would go back and forth for a number of times until a win-win solution presents itself. Since the pandemic, I have been working for JapanFest, the largest Japanese cultural event in the Southeast and because of it, I have been known as the official illustrator/designer of the event. Another proud moment was when I was asked to be involved in the NI DO TO XR exhibition by Georgia Tech Arts and Kambara+, a Japanese-American dance studio. The exhibition was a transformative lobby experience of shared connection that journeys through ancestral joy, historical trauma, and community resilience with the narrative of Japanese American incarceration. I was commissioned to create a series of poetry cards for one of the exhibition’s installations, Janice Mirikitani Poetry Machine. My illustrations were based on poetries written by Janice Mirikitani, a former incarceree of the Rohwer, Arizona camp, San Francisco’s poet laureate, and culture bearer. You are able to see the machine and poetry cards I created in the photos. I learned about a portion of the Japanese-American history and it was an eye-opening experience.

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

I do not believe in them, until they become more regulated in the future.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I know there are many competitive creative souls out there in the field, however I believe the sky is the limit. No matter how hard we try to improve ourselves, there will be always others much better than we are. Therefore, what drives my journey is to learn from other fellow creatives and peacefully coexist with one another.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sushirley.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sysshirley
• Other: https://bio.site/sysshirley

Image Credits
sushirley.com