We recently connected with Mina Ferrante and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mina, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

Growing up, I was used to strangers exclaiming when first introduced, “I know your grandma!” before they went on about what an incredible artist and person she was. In her time, she was well known as one of the first female artists in Vietnam to had a gallery and support her family by painting and drawing. Her father was an artist for the Thanh-Thai emperor, one of the last kings of Vietnam. Her three brothers were also acclaimed artists. Additionally, some of her children pursued art as their career.

With that background, I grew up thinking I would be an artist as well. That path has been set in my head since I started my first art lesson with my grandma when I was around eight years old.

I grew up in Vietnam during the postwar period when resources were scarce. Since paper was a luxury, I found ways to doodle everywhere I could—on the concrete sidewalk with a white rock, on the dirt floor with a bamboo stick, or with charcoal bits on scrap newspaper merchants used to wrap food. My family would comment, “For sure, you will follow in your grandma’s footsteps!”

Mina, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I grew up in Vietnam. Despite our family’s financial difficulties, and with my mom’s unwavering help and support, I took art lessons after high school with one of a well known artists in Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Tam. Eventually, I had a solo silk painting exhibition at the Fine Art Association of Ho Chi Minh City Gallery. The city’s daily news called me “Vietnam’s youngest solo exhibition artist.”

When I immigrated to the US at 21 years old, my father promised he would work tirelessly to support me and my five siblings so we could finish college. He said, “Education is the only way to thrive in America.”

I attended the Academy of Art College in San Francisco. During my third year, I was one of 35 students recruited from 13 top art colleges in America, Canada, and France to attend Walt Disney’s Animation Training Boot Camp in 1997. Upon completing the Boot Camp, I was one of three students who received a scholarship and a post-graduation offer to work for Disney Feature Animation Studios. I worked as a background designer for animated films, including Atlantis, Treasure Planet, Home on the Range, Tarzan 2, and Lilo and Stitch 2.

I eventually left Disney to be a full-time mother to my three children. I spent years volunteering at their elementary school, helping teachers in classrooms, teaching art lessons, and raising funds for various charity events. When my children finished elementary school, I refocused on my career. I started painting again while attending an online program to earn my Master’s in Art History and Liberal Arts. I joined different art associations, got involved in art community events, and submitted my paintings to galleries and exhibitions. In 2017, I had another solo exhibition in Vietnam. I teach art lessons at my private studio to adults and children. At the present, I am also working on my family illustrative memoir.

Growing up in poverty taught me to be strong, work hard, and care for others in need. I learned that through difficult times, while material things come and go, good friends and family will always be there for us, just as we will be there for others.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is that art is my therapy and solace. It is a way to express myself, conveying emotions and stories that words alone cannot capture. Through my artwork, I can give back to the world by sharing beauty, sparking emotions, and inspiring others. Art is my passion for connecting with others and positively impacting them.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In the spring of 1975, my family and many others scrambled at the city’s port, desperately trying to jump aboard a barge, hoping it could take us further south to escape the advancing North Vietnamese Communist forces. In the panic, people pushed and shoved to get on the barge. Some fell into the water and were crushed by the heavy barge against the rocky dock.

I was only six years old then. Following my dad, I tried to jump on board but fell into the gap between the barge and the dock. Luckily, I managed to grab a metal post at the barge’s edge and screamed for help. Amazingly, amidst the sea of people, Dad heard me. He swung around, yelled, “Hang on tight,” and pulled me to safety.

Later, he told me, “You have a very strong will, and I’m very proud of you.” I remember his words throughout my life, especially when I hit the lowest points and everything seemed unbearably hard. Remembering Dad’s comment, I would force myself to get up and keep going until I thrived again.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.minahoferrante.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/minahoferrante?igsh=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mina.h.ferrante
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mina-ferrante-50996167/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWiuFCH6SFCLm3Q2OkU5PDA
• Other: n/a

Image Credits

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