Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather C. Lou. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Heather is an angry Gemini earth dragon, multiracial, Asian, queer, cisgender, disabled, survivor/surviving, anxious, and depressed woman of color artist and educator based in St. Paul, Minnesota, which is the historical occupied land of the Dakota, Ojibwe, and Anishinaabe peoples. She is a painter, printmaker, digital artist, poet, performer, and public artist dedicated to making art accessible, engaging, and multi-dimensional.
Heather is from the Torrance/Gardena, California area, the home of the Kizh (Keech) people. She spent her childhood with her Taishanese grandmother eating persimmons and learning about community through food, storytelling, and a good game of mahjong with the aunties. Heather creates art that centers on the narratives of her ancestors- particularly her amah- and focuses on how to find joy and healing in the midst of intergenerational trauma. Her art is vibrant, colorful, and wistful- leaving viewers with a sense of awe, hope, and vitality- which has been a through-line in her over 10+ yearlong artistic career.
As a post-structuralist and futurist scholar-practitioner, she has focused on arts-based research and assessment, critical mixed-raced studies, womxn of color feminism, first amendment rights, and dismantling white supremacy within institutional practices. She has worked at a multitude of institutions and in a variety of functional areas- with the goal to center and empower the people with the most marginalized and minoritized experiences.
Her more recent work focuses on Asian and Black solidarity and coalition building movements, dismantling anti-Blackness within Asian communities, addressing historical trauma and continued violence against Asian womxn/femmes/elders/youth throughout the COVID pandemic and beyond, and utilizing art as a method of continued intergenerational healing for queer and trans-Black, Indigenous, People of Color. Her work has been exhibited in the Minneapolis Institute of Art, University of Minnesota, Hamline University, Macalester College, University of California, Berkeley, Oregon State University, and elsewhere. As a community leader, she is a co-founder of Support Local Hustle (a BIPOC collective in the Twin Cities that has served over a hundred artists and makers and thousands of patrons), Northern Lights Artist Council Member, Funny Asian Women Kollective Advisory Board Member, and have served as a resident artist at nonprofits such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, Reclaim, and Free Arts Minnesota.
In her spare time, Heather loves birdwatching, snuggling loon (her pup), roller-skating, hiking for self-care, playing her ukulele, and spending time with her chosen family.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As a queer, disabled, woman of color in art, I choose to be visible and make my art political. It is vibrant, hopeful, and challenges dominant narratives by de-centering white supremacy culture. I have been in predominantly white art spaces- often serving or performing as the only artist of color on panels, boards, councils, or keynotes. A lack of representation in Minnesota is notable- and it has been important for me to develop networks for support and mentorship with/for other queer, disabled, people of color artists and makers in the state to help increase access and retention in the arts. My focus on creativity, advocacy, and access has made me a more impactful artist in my community, demonstrating the power of relational leadership, identity, and dismantling white supremacy culture in the arts.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
One of my favorite features about my work can be found here: https://springboardexchange.org/heather-c-lou/.
As an artist, I focus on futurism, joy, and intergenerational healing. As my art pushes the envelope, it is also conversational, curious, and invites the viewer(s) to explore controversial topics with a sense of wonder. I am known for my eco-feminist watercolor pieces, digital portraits, quippy block prints, and relationship-building nature in my work. I am proud not only of the ways I have built a strong artistic portfolio, but the ways I have infused my values into my work without compromise. Being able to see my art on billboards, in libraries and books, in buildings, etc. It’s a literal artistic dream come true. A patron shared the following the other day “how does someone not love your art? It is like receiving a warm hug?” I’d like to imagine that receiving art from me is deeply personal, impactful, and helps the person on the other end feel seen/supported- and that is something to be thrilled about.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Follow people on social media. Reach out to them. Reach out to artists you admire. Ask them for a tea/coffee. Learn about their passions. Follow through and invest in the relationship. And carry that energy forward to mentor others. That energy is a vital alchemy.
Contact Info:
- Email: hclouart@gmail.com
- Website: hclouart.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/hclou
- Other: https://springboardexchange.org/heather-c-lou/
