Transforming Intergenerational Pain into Inspiration and Strength
Lauren Iida is a local artist, whose work adorns public spaces including the Washington State Convention Center, Plymouth Housing in Seattle and Uncle Bob’s place in Seattle’s Chinatown International District. Her main medium is hand-cut paper.
Iida’s Japanese American grandparents were incarcerated during WWII. They were among 120,000 people of Japanese descent who were forcibly removed from the west coast into barracks in the deserts of the interior US. She describes how she processes her family’s trauma, and how it’s inspired her artwork.
Iida is represented by ArtXchange Gallery. She’ll be unveiling a 30 foot paper memory net featuring symbolic objects from the book, Swimmers, written by Julie Otsuka, May 19th at 7 pm at the Seattle Public Library Central Branch in downtown Seattle. Otsuka will be speaking about the book. Registration will be required for the event.
Producer: Yuko Kodama
Photo: From Lauren Iida
Open Studio Cambodia Exhibit
How are Cambodian artists approaching contemporary art today? Lauren Iida is an Artist and Founder of Open Studio Cambodia, an artist collective based in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Iida founded this organization in 2018. It mentors, represents, and provides supplies and communal studio and gallery space to a small group of local Cambodian contemporary artists.
KBCS spoke with Iida at The Vestibule in Ballard, where Open Studio Cambodia artists’ work is featured through December 17th in the exhibit, Starting to Work Again: Contemporary Cambodian Art. She describes the contemporary art scene in Cambodia today and introduces some of the artists featured in this exhibit.
Producer: Yuko Kodama
Photo: Lauren Iida
Lauren Lida
