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

Aesther, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

Happiness is a subjective term that can be defined in various ways. One view of happiness centers on eudaimonic well-being– pleasure accompanied by psychological growth and development. The positive effects of psychological maturity are characterized by greater awareness and psychological freedom; However, it is paired with negative effects such as “uncertainty, emotional resistance, and sense of loss that comes with the gradual separation from an old yet familiar way of meaning-making and understanding the world” (Fossas, 2019). As such, the pursuit of eudaimonia can be stressful and at times painful, but the act of pursuing eudaimonic happiness ultimately helps one mature despite the obstacles one will encounter.

This very idea of eudaimonia captures my experience as an artist. To grow means to change. But change is difficult, because by human nature, we are creatures of comfort. We cling to stability and rationality for survival. An artist, on the contrary, is constantly defying stability and security. Being an artist is by no means an easy path– it requires extreme diligence, endurance, and fierce independence even if one goes in knowing that the stakes are high; however, the uncertainty of change is precisely what cultivates meaningful and memorable experiences. Rising up to the challenges is ultimately what gives me a sense of purpose and joy in continuing my pursuit in the arts.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

As a daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, I grew up in the city suburbs of Boston with a fairly normal childhood. Like many children of immigrants, English was not my primary language, so I naturally found other ways to express myself. Through the discovery of the humble crayon and a blank sheet of paper, I began to develop a love for art-making. To me, a blank sheet of paper was the most powerful thing in the world. The possibility of bringing new ideas and forms of expression to life on paper was limitless.

My connection to visual arts from an early age led me to study painting at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. After receiving my Bachelors in Fine Arts, I moved to Florence, Italy to study figurative art and attend an artist residency. At that point in my life, I was fascinated with figurative surrealism and referenced many of the renaissance masterpieces I encountered in the city’s museums and galleries. My time at Numeroventi Residency was also when I first found a sense of belonging in a community of artists. It was a precious time that bore close friendships.

Following the residency, I decided to move to NYC in the hopes of further establishing my studio art practice. Shortly after my move, my work started taking an abstract turn, however, I never fully abandoned the figure. The foundational training derived from studying the figure remains in my present work. The form of the figure may not be visible on the surface, but hidden under the abstract mass lies its human expression. It is a sensation that transcends logic and reason. These expressions can only be felt.

Over the past five years in New York, my work continued to grow more abstract. One might describe them as abstract landscapes. These works are slow and take time to comprehend for both the maker and viewer. They are made over a long process of layering multiple layers of oil paint on canvas, which results in depth of field and luminous transparency. Drawn from observations in nature and memories of distant landscapes once traveled, the ambiguity of these works leave space for the viewer to discover their own interpretation and ultimately enter into a realm of their own. For this reason, I hope my work provides a resting place for meditation and contemplation to each viewer. They ask the viewer to slow down, draw a breath and shake off the dust of daily life.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

One book that altered my way of seeing the world is called “In Praise of Shadows” by Jun’ichirō Tanizaki. It was key to opening a way for me to reconnect to my Eastern heritage and helped me better understand the culture, values, and traditions which shaped the lives of my ancestors and beyond. This small but significant book provided a turning point toward Eastern philosophy and the incorporation of Eastern elements into my work.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The only thing I’m allergic to is boredom. So my creative journey centers on two main purposes: The first is to keep on learning. As long as I am in an optimal state of learning, I am growing in my practice. It may sound simple, but this is what I consider success. Increase in money, status, and power may take me to higher places, but they may also distract and inhibit my ability to create work that derives from the purity of contemplation and self-expression. The goal then is to strike a balance between the two. As Jasper Johns once said, “to be an artist you have to give up everything, including the desire to be a good artist.” This phrase reminds me that I must be prepared to always work without applause, which brings me to the second main purpose in my creative journey: to turn inward. The growth of an artist not only requires the technical proficiency of artistic skills, but also the artist’s philosophical and spiritual advancement. By turning inward, this means caring less about the opinions of others and learning to trust my own voice and cultivate my own vision.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.aestherchang.art
• Instagram: @aestherchang
• Other: Represented by: Jean Jacobs Gallery, New Canaan, CT, US Galerie Une Fille aux Cheveux Noirs; Paris, France

Image Credits
Florian Touzet, Aesther Chang