Reflection

Reflection

I grew up in a condo in China surrounded by trees and nature. But every time I stepped outside the locked gate, I saw nothing but the result of urbanization. Dry concrete walls from tall buildings that blocked the morning sunlight. Not a single tree in sight. I remember wandering with friends in the park. It wasn’t just a playground—it was my comfort place. It was filled with ponds, bushes, flowers, and trees taller than our building. That place meant everything to me and inspired my artwork. I wanted to create pieces surrounded by nature, as a way to rebel against urbanization. After moving to the U.S, the urbanization around me only got worse. I no longer had a comfort place and thinking about that helped shape the idea behind my pieces. I’ve always loved creating. Like many other Asian kids, my mom put me in study classes when I was younger, but one day I saw a art display from an art class and begged my mom and said, “Mom, I want to do that!” That’s how my art journey began. I still feel that same energy and pride when I create art today. I chose digital art because it’s unique and fascinating—it lets me create even without physical tools that I can't get. I’ve explored it for years and feel confident in the different styles in order to match how I feel. Through this contest theme, I realized how deeply nature affects us. Humans and nature are connected. Only through a healthy collaboration between the two can we thrive. Not through endless urbanization that ignores nature’s needs. For the viewers of my artwork, I want to say: Nature supports us, we must support it back. We need to bring nature into cities again, not push it out.