Amanda is a
multidisciplinary artist
Amanda is a
Through color, composition, and code, she invites audiences into new worlds filled with wonder
and belonging.
Born in Atlanta to Thai and Indonesian immigrants, Amanda studied neuroscience at Columbia and worked at an Alzheimer’s research lab before becoming a full-time artist, educator, and activist based in Brooklyn, NY. Her explorations of feminism, science, and community have reclaimed space in museums and galleries, at protests and rallies, on buildings, highway tunnels, and subway corridors, as well as on the mainstage of two TED conferences. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, the Guardian, and on the cover of TIME magazine. In 2020-2021, she was artist-in-residence with the NYC Commission on Human Rights and her work has been acquired into the permanent collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum & the Library of Congress.
She has received recognition from
We Are More
This public art installation reclaims space in Times Square and around the City of Boston, first released to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month. A vibrant, joyful ode to the diversity of AAPI voices and stories collected from around the United States. These stories are paired with hopeful, defiant portraits that push back against Asian American stereotypes. This work highlights the resilience and range of the AAPI diaspora and makes it unequivocally clear: we are here to speak, we are here to stand, we are here to stay. Click here for resources and to learn more.
MAY WE KNOW OUR OWN STRENGTH
Inspired by the watershed moment of NYC-based AAPI youth sharing their stories of sexual assault and gender-based violence, Amanda created a participatory installation that transformed anonymous survivor stories, collected internationally, into hanging sculptures of hope and belonging. She created an intentional healing space for folx to lay down their burdens and a visual and experiential reminder that we can all bloom and grow after trauma. Read more about the work in The Guardian or see the case study here.
I STILL BELIEVE
As artist-in-residence with the NYC Commission on Human Rights, Amanda created public art campaign, “I Still Believe in Our City”, to address the rise in anti-Asian racism during the COVID-19 crisis. The series took over all the ad space at Atlantic Terminal, and over 75 bus shelters and LinkNYC kiosks in neighborhoods where anti-Asian bias incidents have occurred. The series is a celebration of everything Asian American people contribute to New York City, from working the frontlines as essential workers to building coalition with the Black Lives Matter movement. Learn more here.
FINDINGS
In partnership with the Heising-Simons Foundation, Amanda is creating an AR-enabled mural series celebrating women and science, appearing in cities across the country beginning in Fall 2020. As much as FINDINGS reimagines science through vibrant public artwork, it also serves as a moving tribute to womankind. Learn more here.
CONNECTIVE TISSUE
Amanda opened her first large-scale solo exhibition, Connective Tissue, at the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art last September. The work sits at the intersection of art, design, science, tech. 10 new works use scientific phenomena to explore the human experience, and investigate the different ways we form relationships and leverage interactions to create motion, meaning, and impact. Experience the exhibition here.
ATOMIC by Design
Amanda is the creator of ATOMIC by Design, a fashion line and community for girls and women who aren't afraid to wear their smarts on their sleeves. The line is based on the 118 ATOMIC elements. Like the women who wear them, every element plays a unique role is shaping our world. Amanda believes that every girl should have the opportunity to express her love for STEM and find her tribe.
ATOMIC by Design won a WeWork Creator's Award.
The Leading Strand
Amanda is the founder and CEO of The Leading Strand, an organization that explores the power of discovery and human ingenuity. It pairs scientists and designers to co-create experiences that translate research in rigorous and visually compelling ways.
The Storytelling of Science
Helping the world appreciate the people, stories and ideas behind the important but often inaccessible institution that Science is one of Amanda's missions. Find out why in her TED Residency talk and her mainstage TED talk.
Beyond Curie
She is the creator of Beyond Curie, an award-winning design project that celebrates the rich history of women kicking ass in STEM fields. She hopes to inspire the next generation of kids to go into STEM fields by showing that our world was built by brilliant women, not just men, of all backgrounds.
Creative Habit
Fond of experiments, Amanda set out to test whether she could train creativity with her project Creative Habit. For a year, she released an image daily created in 1 hour. Read her findings here.
Experiments
Amanda's curiosity takes her to all sorts of places, and often that work—whether commissioned by a client or initiated on her own—does not fit neatly into a box. From visualizing particle physics to developing augmented-reality experiences to enabling creative breakthroughs, these experiments have allowed her flex different muscles and explore new possibilities.
