Deanna Wong is a Chinese-American non-binary artist born and raised on Duwamish and Coast Salish land. As a voracious traveling camper and overall gelatinous human, they create functional ceramics and large-scale murals featuring wiggly critter-filled illustrations. At an even five foot tall, Deanna could be described as “just a little guy” and also a “very long yardstick.”
Their vivid colorful artworks have been featured in Seattle Refined and selected for the 2024 Sunny Dayz Mural Festival in Ponca City, Oklahoma, and the 2024 Plaza Walls Mural Expo in Oklahoma City. They have received grants from the Norman Arts Council and the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition.
My art practice centers around themes of whimsy and fluidity. It is a celebration of life, a reminder of the importance of sharing joy, and a reflection of our ability to change and shape-shift. The characters that appear in my illustrations are reflections of my way of being and navigating through the world – uncomfortable and odd, yet endearing with an innocent charm. These playful depictions bring attention to the joy and beauty found everyday.
We grow old and forget how to play. I am drawn to clay as a medium for its ability to adapt and conduct itself in the world of play. Clay ties us to the earth. It is dry and brittle, moist and soft, breakable, but strong, and moldable to any form. Imaginative play opens our minds to new possibilities, solutions, and ways of being. In this way, enthusiastic silliness and goof-itude is fundamental to shape a world greater than our own. Love and joy is not only a positive force that we can generate for one another, but also a force that fights against policies of division and hatred. Especially in a society that demands us to work harder and highlights our differences rather than similarities, we require vibrant reminders in the power of soft kindness and change.
As a Chinese-American non-binary artist, I occupy space in between cultures and genders. The categories we assign to our lives provide structure to build our sense of self, but also create boxes to contort to. Being born in America, I was never Asian enough to be Asian or white enough to be American. When I was younger, I spent hours pinching my nose shut so it might grow pointier to resemble my white classmates. Later in life, I also discovered ways I had bent my behavior to suit gender norms. Andrea Gibson writes in their poem, “Andrew”, “… gender is just one of the ways we’re boxed in and labeled, before we’re ever able to speak who we dream we are, who we believe we’ll become, like drum beats ever changing their rhythm.”
My illustrations embrace the fluid discovery of identity while having to wiggle and wrap yourself around the categories and structures that exist. By using gelatinous and flowing critters, I am able to adapt each form to the space available, sometimes resulting in additional limbs or droopy gloopy bits. This fluidity also highlights our ability as critters to adapt, change, and be influenced by our surroundings. The bright bold colors used in my pieces also highlight diversity and celebrate it.