ABOUT

Artist Statement

 

"吃了吗?" my mom asks me as I walk through the door of my home. 

 

Growing up, my mom didn't say “I love you,” rather, she showed her affections through the effort she put into the act of making delicious meals and snacks. This body of work revolves around memories of the dinner table throughout my life. 

Nourishment is a common subject that brings people together. There is a connection that occurs during the preparation and consumption of a meal, wherein we create memories and express our gratitude to one another. Bonding over a shared meal is culturally universal and representing food as a tool for building strong relationships allows me to communicate across cultural barriers on familiar ground. 

 

Throughout my work, I've illustrated personal references to Chinese dishes and depicted them with a dream-like aura. The hope is to depict and convey the complex emotions that my family’s cooking evokes in me. My artwork presents food as a narrative and a cultural avenue of communication between generations. 

 

Biography

 

Mable Ni is a Chinese-American artist who was born and raised in Spartanburg, SC. Mable primarily works in printmaking, painting, and ceramics. She will be graduating from Converse University in May with a Bachelors of Fine Art and plans on completing her Masters of Fine Art at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. 

 

Her body of work currently explores the concept of food as a love language. She attempts to display authentic and Americanized Chinese cuisine as a means to explore family dynamics, acts of love, and present her experiences as a Chinese American. Mable often expresses these themes through depictions of food, anecdotes, and contemporary dining motifs. 

Mable’s artworks have been included in several national and international exhibitions across the United States. She recently received an opportunity to display her artwork in the group exhibition called Feast at the Spartanburg Art Museum. Mable was also selected to be a part of the Atlanta Printmaking Biennial Juried Show by the esteemed founder of Hello, Print Friends, Miranda Metcalf.