Linna Yao

Yale University

Prepackaged Identity, 2017
oil on canvas, 48 x 36 inches

Tell us about the work that you have submitted.
I am subject to society's perception of who an Asian American female adolescent should be. For too long, I have allowed these stereotypes to limit my expression. More and more, however, I am trying to challenge the preconceived notions of who I am by acting out of unencumbered sincerity.

How would you describe your studio practice?
Making art fulfills my indomitable urge to materialize an internal struggle. Most of the time, I do not understand why I have that urge or how it fits into my life at that moment. After the completion of a piece, however, I finally begin to understand why I felt that need to create, and in those times, art becomes my therapist, the unbiased voice that helps me solve my internal struggles that are deeply embedded in my subconscious. My canvases are my most private journals; they hold my deepest secrets and conflicts. By physically representing such struggles, I am able to find clarity in my knowledge of self.

What themes regularly resurface in your work?
In my paintings, my interaction with my environment is always conflicting; while I try to resist the restrictions of my environment, I also sink into these environments. This conflict between fighting and surrendering to my environment to take control over me is reflective of my adolescence: I float between yearning for the autonomy of adulthood but also wanting to keep my childish ways.

Website: www.linnayao.com/painting