Interview with Jessica Chan of Sowing Ground

Jessica Chan is the founder of Sowing Ground, an online studio shop where you can buy gorgeous stickers, stationery sets, prints, and so much more. Jessica (or JChan to those who knew her back in the day) was my [Maya's]  freshman year RA. I'm not sure she knows this, but JChan helped to get me through the hardest year of my entire life. Jessica is full of brightness and positivity, and she is the embodiment of goodness and talent. Jessica has been one of our most fervent supporters since day one, and it is an honor to have her as our first interviewee! Enjoy our interview with her (click "read more" below or on the blog title), and remember to check out her shop and socials!!

1. Elevator pitch?
   I am an artist that makes nature-inspired goods for joyful living that take the form of art prints, stationery, handmade pins, jewelry, and more.
   
2. What is your favorite piece you’ve created to-date?
   My favorite piece I've created to date is a linocut print I made in college. I love it because it not only contains technical challenges I learned to overcome, but it also is a print that represents my own tumultuous relationship with my bicultural identity as an Asian American. The print is an image of a monkey with a sheep's head sitting on top of a sheep with a monkey's head, accompanied by my Chinese name in Chinese calligraphy characters.
   
   Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year and my late January birthday happens to be right in the shifting window. Most 1992 babies usually identify their Chinese zodiac animal as the monkey, whereas 1991 babies identify the sheep as their animal. Growing up, my parents always joked that we never knew if I was a sheep with a monkey's head (end of one year and the beginning of the next) or the other way around. Over time, I realized that this joke really summed up how I felt like I never really belonged as an American or as a Chinese woman.
   
   In Chinese communities, I wasn't fully accepted because of my limited Mandarin language abilities and within American communities, I would forever look different, many times assumed to be foreign-born. I often felt stuck in a liminal space. Creating this print, I tackled carving animal fur which was something I always avoided due to its difficulty, but through the laborious process of carving and printing, I had time to meditate on my identity. This piece, along with several others I made for my senior art show exploring ethnic, cultural, and gender identity, was not only expressive and explorative, but in the end, healing. I came to understand that I didn't have to choose one side of my heritage or the other, or completely fit into either/or, but rather, who I am presents an opportunity to choose the best of both worlds and carve out a space for myself to celebrate the beauty of my mixed heritage.
   
   
3. Where do you draw inspiration from?
   I draw inspiration through many different sources, mainly from my environment. When I refer to "my environment," that includes both nature/where I live/my community, but also my personal experiences and lessons I am learning along the way. I love to create art that not only captures the beauty of the physical world, but also expresses ideas that celebrate how I interact with the world and others.
   
4. What’s your process like - start to finish - in ten words?
   Research, more research, brainstorm, reference photos/classes, sketch, create, refine.
   
5. What medium do you not resonate with at all?
   Performance art. I love to observe and take it in, but I don't really enjoy the idea of producing it.
   
6. What are your top favorite pieces from another artist(s)?
   I admit that I should spend more time studying the work of others, so it's hard to name specific artists. I enjoy art from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, but I also really love the patterns and designs found in Islamic (for example, the Alhambra), Chinese, and Japanese architecture. Off the top of my head, favorite artists would be Caravaggio, Gustav Klimt, and Hung Liu.
   
7. What is your favorite compliment given to you about your work?
   Nothing makes me beam more than when clients comment about how work I have created resonates with them, whether it speaks to them on a surface level or deeper, it empowers them or brings them cheer. It's especially lovely when folks specifically purchase my work because it reminds them of someone they love or they feel like my work would make a perfect gift. Sowing Ground is rooted in building community and in the spirit of giving, so I love having the chance to participate in positively impacting relationships through art. That is certainly a big gift to me!
   
8. What is your favorite word that you rarely get to use?
   Plethora. It's such a strange combination of letters, but is pleasing to the ear. I also just love that it conjures up images of abundance and variety. I am a big foodie, so when I hear that word in combination to anything food-related, it's music to my ears. Variety, after all, is the spice of life, right? Maybe this is why I can't stick to one medium and I just love trying new ways to create.
9. What is your least favorite animal?
   The mosquito. Being itchy is really terrible and even though mosquitoes are tiny, they can be so loud. It's terrifying to lay there at night and hear them coming for you, but not be able to spot them and get rid of them. The worst!!!
10. What do you want on your gravestone?
    "Here lies Jessica, a good and faithful servant of God, who loved and served others well."
11. What top three things keep you up at night?
    My to-do list/schedule, relationship faux pas (knowing that I accidentally hurt others and replaying scenarios that help me make it right), and the fear of forgetting to do something or show up for an appointment (being a flake is at the top of my no-no list).
12. You’ve been placed under witness protection program, but you get to make up your new identity. What’s your new name, occupation, and hobby?
    Naomi Rivers | teaching artist & owner of a collaborative/cooperative space that hosts classes, has a gathering space (cafe or whatnot) and puts on community events | goes trail riding on horseback on the weekends
13. What’s your least favorite color?
    As a visual artist, that's really hard because every color can be appreciated and have a use. If I had to pick, it would be anything fluorescent or a muddy/in-between color.
14. Congratulations, you just adopted a tortoise! What are you going to name it?
    Torte. Who doesn't love a good animal pun, reference to cake and (this might be stretching it) stuffed pastas (tortellini)?
15. If you could read the diary of one person, who would it be?
    Bryce, my husband. Anything that might help me understand him better so that I can love him better is a worthwhile read!
16. You visit a medium and a spirit responds. Who do you think will contact you first?
    My grandpa on my mom's side. I didn't have the chance to meet him before he passed, but my mom always tells me how much I remind her of him and how well we would have gotten along. I think he would have loved to meet me and I, him. We would probably get up to all sorts of mischief together and spend hours in the kitchen cooking with a ton of garlic!

Check out Jessica's website and socials! -->