Today we’d like to introduce you to Danzhu Hu.
Hi Danzhu, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’d say my journey as an artist began when I was little living in a small town in China, where I discovered my love for art. I would spend hours drawing, using it to explore my identity and connect with the world around me, and as a way to make peace with the chronic loneliness, I felt growing up as an only child and outcast to the boarding school where I spent eight years of my life in. But yet, I still didn’t know how to properly tell stories through my drawings.
After finishing my undergraduate studies in China, I moved to New York to pursue my graduate degree in illustration. And thanks to my MFA program, I developed a fascination with the power of visual storytelling and how it connects people from different cultures and backgrounds. During this period, I also explored the relationship between humans and nature, which became a prominent and hidden theme in my work. I love translating cryptic emotions into organic shapes: the feeling of loss to the ethereal and wavy shape of the wind and the feeling of closeness to the interconnected and harmonious shapes of vines. To me, nature is my favorite Pinterest board for inspiration.
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?
I wouldn’t say my journey was smooth. Growing up in a small town in southern China, I have always felt disconnected and isolated, and drawing became my weapon to fight back against these feelings. Although I did doodle a lot as a kid, my caregivers did not take it seriously as my artistic potential. And like most kids in my generation, I had to fully dedicate my attention to academic study, spending the majority of my teenagerhood denying myself the need for artistic expression since pursuing a creative career was considered risky and almost delusional for a girl from a small town who never had any professional training. And the lack of educational resources and access to the art world made things even harder for the young me.
Eventually, I was able to learn drawings systematically when I went to grad school, which wasn’t easy either. I faced the challenge of honing my artistic skills quickly while learning things that my classmates had already studied and balancing my life in a new country. Besides the technical skills, what I found harder to develop was cultivating a genuine voice inside me and learning how to convey it through tips of brushes.
And at the start of my career, facing rejections was another challenge. Self-doubts and constant questions about whether my work was truly worthy of recognition became another norm. So I’ll admit that it does take a lot of courage to put faith in one’s work and accept the reality that it takes time to grow.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Hi, my name is Danzhu, I’m an award-winning multidisciplinary visual storyteller who specializes in illustration and fine art painting. I love creating captivating and emotionally evocative visual narratives with a wide range of mediums, such as animations, paper sculptures, and more.
I’m passionate about exploring themes intimately related to my personal experiences, such as female identity, mental health advocacy, and spirituality. And I love approaching these topics with a tender curiosity while emphasizing the subtle, nuanced, and cryptic emotional experiences. And I’m proud of my whimsical yet vulnerable approach to such complex topics when I’m working on editorial projects, like my TIME Magazine assignment about patient burnout, and the assignment for The Baffler Magazine about female homeless experiences in Japan.
I’m also proud of my MFA thesis project “Farewell,” which is a 3D paper-cut painting series about reimaging trauma with self-love and compassion. This project was inspired by my personal experience of losing my grandmother and battling with mental health struggles. It features hauntingly enchanting visuals that gently tell a story about letting go and self-love. In retrospect, the process of creating Farewell was extremely healing and therapeutic for me, and I’m truly grateful for the experience of creating this series.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Although I have only been to the city once, I’ve loved the beaming energy in the air. And the plants were extremely fascinating to me too. I had to archive almost every plant I encountered, especially the cactus which I found alienly mysterious and elegant. It was a visit that inspired me greatly.
And if I have to say what I liked the least, it would be how far everything is from each other since I can’t drive, haha. Living in New York City made me used to getting around without a car. But I would love to learn how to drive for LA.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.danzhuhu.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danzhu.hu/
