Quarantine Portrait Series: Immolation
Photography by Hwa-Jeen Na
The power to choose has been the biggest motivation for me as I create work during this quarantine. I can either choose to sit and watch Netflix, or I can choose to create an image about what I’m feeling or thinking. Sometimes, Netflix wins when I’m feeling too distant; but, there’s currently so much going on in the world that in order to process any of it I have to create work. Right now, I feel that many people are living in a state of limbo where they aren’t sure what is coming and they’re not quite sure how this even happened. In some of my images, I use fire as an element to represent limbo because it can simultaneously represent creation/destruction or purification/corruption. The intensity and shape of fire can also connote certain moods or feelings. For instance, if the fire is small and flickering like a candle then it could represent restraint, fear, or withdrawal; in contrast, if the flames are strong and roaring this might convey passion, anger, or consumption. It’s dynamic and I found that to be interesting as a visual element. In other images, smoke and liquids are used because they are elements that interact with or derive from fire - smoke is a signal and liquids will either feed or extinguish the fire.
More recently, I created an image that is directly inspired by an article from the NYT called “The Slur I Never Expected to Hear in 2020” by Cathy Park Hong where Hong discusses the recent surge of racism against Asian-Americans due to the coronavirus. As an Asian-American, I deeply identified with the personal anecdotes that she chose to share within the article and immediately needed to create an image inspired by passages from her text along with my personal experiences with racism. The best way I can describe it is it’s often a silent kind of racism. One that makes you feel dirty like you’re covered in some kind of goo and all you want to do is melt away with it as it slides down your face or wash it off in the shower, but you can’t because you can’t show that it’s getting to you. Because you hope that if you play it off and have thick skin then maybe the racism will just go away. Sometimes it does; but it doesn’t mean that it never happened. To quote Hong, “racism never disappears but adapts to new circumstances when old strains rise from the dark vaults of American history.”
Some behind the scenes and a peek into my process:
Thank you for viewing!
