KASIA THAO

Uknown Tears (2022-23)
Kasia Thao, 15, Waterloo Collegiate Institute
(Mixed Media)

I took inspiration from my own culture, Hmong People. I like to incorporate my culture and show it off whenever I can. Growing up I wasn’t the most proud to call myself Hmong. Now I'm happy to say I am. I took inspiration from the headwear, and beading that is commonly used in clothing. Using thumbnail sketches helped me map out where and how I wanted certain features to be. It helped me figure out were I wanted to build and take away from. I made my mask realistic and stylized. Hmong clothing ranges from simple and elegant, to extra and extravagant, and I chose to do something more simple. My thought process was ‘less is more’ and since I can still convey my intended message by doing something simple I decided not to overdo anything and keep it simple, focusing more on realistic and stylized characteristics.