Today we’d like to introduce you to Yi-Hsuan (Ant) Ma.
Hi Yi-Hsuan (Ant), so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I am originally from Taiwan. As a scenic and production designer, people describe me as a person with an enormous amount of determination. Throughout my school training and working experiences, I widely cultivated perspectives in the visual arts. In addition to my major in scenic design, I took a keen interest in many other professions including playwright and photography. Different materials’ experimental usage trained me not only in my creative exploration but also in my practical abilities. Moreover, my second major in literature in college has helped me develop my logical thinking in analyzing scripts and visualizing their words into scenes.
Before I came to the US, I traveled around Europe, specifically as a freelancer working in Berlin for a year. It’s a charming and crazy city. I develop more attachment to myself during traveling, maybe just because I don’t understand any German and I have a lot of time to talk to myself. (smile) I realize my ideas are challenging intellectually but rooted in strong instincts and intuition.
Now, I’m standing on this land. Thanks to my talented collaborators and colleagues surrounding me, here I mention one of my proud works during Covid, called Samuel, a new audio-visual experience for the theater – that invites audience members to listen to audio scenes on their own devices as they explore an unnerving visual dollhouse world. I was very lucky to be nominated as NOTABLE EFFECTS SHOW for Hewes Design Awards, which is considered one of the most important awards in US theater as Obie Awards and Tony Awards.
I want to tell more stories about those beautiful human beings and also share my generosity of spirit, optimism and self-sufficiency.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Being an immigrant artist in the US is never an easy thing, especially since language becomes the biggest barrier when you can’t express yourself properly. People always said it must be hard to be far away from your family, however, the time when I feel really alone is because I still try to find a way to blend into the community.
This year October, it was a pleasure that I joined a project as one of the creative artists called Little Amal Walk, a public event all around New York City. Little Amal is a 12 feet puppet, a refugee, physically and conceptually. She becomes an international symbol of compassion and of human rights. She carries a message of hope for displaced people everywhere, especially children who have been separated from their families.
This project also reminds my production design for the film “Hester street“ for a theoretical project. Immigrants are entangled in the boundary. Someone gets used to it, someone is struggling. I am trying to embrace the messiness surrounded by endless hostility and exile.
Immigrant artists are IN it and dealing with it every moment.
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?
“Coming from a different culture and background of literature training, her approach to design is interdisciplinary and inclusive.”
I would say what sets me apart from others is to always explore the core of the story, finding comprehensive perspectives on visual storytelling.
Everyone needs a story. I always believe being a theater/film artist is to open a conversation for all different contexts of culture by sharing stories to connect with each other. I think my personality really helps that — I’m not shy away from asking direct questions, always have a deep curiosity about people and processes, and not to mention my terrific sense of humor and sense of adventure that drives me to randomly jump on a bike exploring the real New York neighborhood to neighborhood (of course including being guest artist travel around the US!), and diving into new materials and projects in creative (chaotic) ways.
Based on formed conceptual skills and strength of character, my works show a unique and sophisticated design sensibility that is both lyrical and political.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
As for risk-taking, I’m not an active risk-taker person, but you know, I’m Taiwanese and support Taiwan’s independence. Taiwan is under threat from China for a long time. How to be safe and keep my political statement is always the biggest risk in my life as an artist and activist.
Talking about pursuing my dream career abroad but still trying to do something for my country, I was one of the curators of Freedom Crossing – Taiwan Film Festival. We aim to trace the thread of common humanity across different civilizations by giving voice to its expression in art, stories, and philosophies.
My goal of being an artist is to promote a global dialogue for all different contexts of culture by bringing together people, art, and ideas. The pandemic era of 2020 reminds us how fragile human lives can be and how easily a society can lose its function. Social trust and solidarity quickly break down as people project their fear onto others. Consistent prejudice is later formalized as violence and discrimination in the social structure. The American ideals of freedom are getting more divided than ever, and the way we treat others who are foreign to “us” is often to maintain ignorance. In the American multi-cultural community, no single person or group has perfect knowledge of all things, and for this reason, I believe that dialogue is the key to preparing us for the challenge of post-pandemic life and reaching our full humanity.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://yihsuanma.wixsite.com/ant-setdesign
- Instagram: @ant_horsema
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ant.ma.73
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCL43dAjD_rmQbMg_w2JX7Ow
- Other: https://issuu.com/antma
Image Credits
Bloom Bloom Pow, Photos by Carol Rosegg Piglet Piglet, director: Tsung-Yen Lin Little Amal, photo by Yi-Hsiang Kao NYC dyke march, photo by Yi-Hsiang Kao model shots by Ant Ma
