Artwork from Eda Yu Highlights the Historical Struggle of the AAPI Community

In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month and to help highlight the need to address the recent violence against the AAPI community, Voqal recently commissioned artwork from artist, Eda Yu. The artwork and a brief statement from the artist are below.

how wood ash refertilizes the earth is a work by Eda Yu that interrogates whether or not there has really ever been a safe space for Asians in America. Featuring photography by Ash Alexander, the work uses negative space and movement to illustrate the ebb and flow of how Asians were given and then had land taken away from them throughout U.S. history. In a year of staggering anti-Asian violence, this piece aims to remind folks that safety is something Asian Americans have always been, and must keep, fighting for — everywhere we are.

Image Description: Photo of a young Asian Women with a brightly colored blur obscuring her figure.

 

Image Description: Photo of young asian women wearing a wedding veil. The background is a well lit room covered in windows.

 

Image Description: Image of a young asian women covered in sheer cloth looking upward with hands stretched out over her head. Background is a well-lit room covered in white windows.

 

Image Description: Storyboard that includes two images. The first is a blurred close up of a multi-color dress. The second is a young asian woman wearing that blurred dress staring directly into the camera.

 

Image Description: A picture of a young Asian American woman wearing a blue shirt and a long purple skirt. Her hands are extended over her head and come together to form a peak.

 

Image Description: Two pictures. One is of an Asian American women holding her hands two hands in front of her face. The second is of the same women holding one hand out in front of her fact. There is a white sheet behind her in both photos. .

 

Image description: Image of Asian American women holding her stomach and chest leaning back against a gray wall and looking up. She is wearing a blue shirt and long purple skirt with no shoes.

 

Image Description: A picture of partial body (blue shirt and long purple shirt) with arm extended and hand flat against ground. The hand is wearing rings and has green finger nail polish.

 

Image Description: An Asian American woman wearing a loose fitting white and red shirt and skirt. She is stretching her arm over her head and leaning to the right. The background is room that has white windows covered by a large white/sheer curtain.

 

Image Description: A picture of an Asian American woman sitting against a gray wall. She is wearing a blue shirt and yellow skirt. Her head is tilted to the right and she is looking into the camera.

The words and design of the above artwork were created by Eda Yu, who can be found on Instagram @edacyu. The photos were taken by Ash Alexander, who can be found on Instagram @ashalexander.studio. Also, a special thanks to The Center For Cultural Power for helping make this artwork possible.

You can also view this art in PDF format by clicking here.