During isolation I had difficulty gathering strength and motivation to be creative. Overwhelmed by the fear of being exposed to the virus, grieving for the world in crisis and finding myself doing everything to protect myself, my loved ones and the community around me. Covid wasn’t the only threat I found myself navigating, unfortunately racism reared it’s ugly face again. Those subtle
looks of disgust or distain that make you feel excluded, unwelcome and other. Hearing of increases in hate and violence in the news towards Asians and Chinatowns across Canada. My Covid 19 series was a way for me to translate these feelings into artworks that respond to these experiences. These artworks gave me strength and helped me find my creative voice during the pandemic.
ARTIST BIO
A third-generation Chinese Canadian, Don Kwan turns to his own experiences and challenges of being a gay, East Asian artist as a way to ground in broader conversations about identity, representations, and intergenerational memory-making in the diaspora.
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