Blending in a fresh set of paint, Diamond Bar High School senior Tori Kwon sat down to begin her art piece, “History in our Hands,” two nights before the due date of the Korean American Art Contest. As she continued to create each stroke and color in each space, what once was an empty canvas began to blossom into a painting rich with traditional Korean history.

The senior’s painting depicts her mother knitting a traditional Korean sponge, a susemi, used for washing dishes. Kwon said the painting was inspired by her mother and is a symbol for Korean events that happened, and her mother knitting the sponge depicted the process of making history.

 Kwon referenced the creation of the Declaration of the Republic of Korea, the first female president, the sinking of the MV Sewol ferry and the 2018 Olympics event when North and South Korea flew under one flag in her artwork.  

The senior credits her art teacher, Vianney  Huang, for introducing her to this competition and made it an assignment in his studio art class.

Kwon said  that the hardest challenge she had to overcome was the deadline. Preoccupied with her other responsibilities, the senior had a late start on her painting.

“I worked on it for two days probably four hours each night, so eight hours in total,” Kwon said.

Because of the rushed process, the senior had low expectations for the competition, but was pleasantly surprised when Huang told her she won.

“I was mainly just surprised…” Kwon said. “When he first told me I won the competition, I thought I got a participation award.”

The senior received $100 in prize money and her painting will be published in the 2020 Korean American Art Day calendar. Throughout December, “History in Our Hands” will be on display in two exhibitions, at the Galleria in Koreatown and the Cerritos Library.

It took many years of perseverance for Kwon to achieve her current level of mastery. The senior began drawing at the age of seven and has not stopped since. With a family background in art, she grew up around art.

“My grandpa works in special effects in Broadway, so he has always been a part of art,” Kwon said. “My mom works in interior design, so art has always been part of my family.”

Because of her family’s history with art, the senior views the activity as something that will always be fun.

“Art is not anything hard,” Kwon said. “For me it’s very relaxing and fun.”

Kwon said that  one of the biggest obstacles in creating art is coming up with original, creative ideas that can be conveyed through various mediums.