‘Han’ is an abstract Korean concept that speaks to a collective sense of sadness, anger, and helplessness that’s embedded in native Koreans who’ve endured years of oppression. Through generational trauma, 'Han' has also shaped my experience as a second generation Korean-American. I feel a deep and personal resonance with this powerful concept which manifests strongly in my practice.
I was 11 years old when my mother went missing. I have been negotiating the ongoing trauma of that loss ever since. As I navigated adolescence and then adulthood through the lens of that experience, I have been on a parallel journey exploring my Korean-American heritage and the boundaries of personal mythologies of self, family, community, and history. Like many who come from a cross-cultural background, I often feel that I live in an in-between world. I am both a Korean and an American, but never fully one or the other. Yet through my practice I have found empowerment and a means to visually reclaim ‘Han’, with the space to explore complex themes of identity and belonging. In my art, I strive to turn victimhood into power, blending Korean concepts such as Neo-Confucianism and folk mythologies with explorations of Western capitalism, sexual liberation, and Christianity. I’m interested in the harmony between chaos and order, in our shared connection to the universe, and how pattern is the basic structure in everything.
I have been influenced by a broad range of artistic styles and practices across time and place. The visual language that I employ in my work draws from richly varied sources, and I find myself pulled to both traditional Korean paintings and classical works of the European Renaissance. The universal questions of morality, relationships, and sexuality are an endless source of interest and inspiration within my practice.
Education
2015 BFA Academy of Art University
Awards
2021 Artrepreneur ‘Think Green’ Open Call
2018 1st Place, INTERSECTIONS: Considering Imbalance, Kahilu Theatre, Juror: Andi Campognone
2018 1st Place, Orangenius: Explorations, Juror: James Razko
2015 Academy of Art University Annual Spring Show, 2nd Place Contemporary, Juror: Craig Nelson
2014 Academy of Art University Annual Spring Show, Director’s Choice, Juror: Craig Nelson
Residencies
2022 Erie Arts and Culture Residency
2021 Chautauqua Visual Arts Artist In Residence Program, Chautauqua, New York
2018 Impact Hub Honolulu, Honolulu, Hawaii
Solo Exhibitions
2023 “The Five Senses”, Honolulu Museum of Art, 900 S. Beretania Street, Honolulu, HI
2020 “The Little Death”, Thinkspace Gallery, 6009 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA
2019 “JEONG”, Mori by Art+Flea, 1170 Auahi St., Honolulu, Hawaii
2018 "A Place In This World", Asian American Resource Center, Austin, Texas
2018 "Last Known Locations", Impact Hub Honolulu, Honolulu, Hawaii
2017 "Lauren Hana Chai: A Search For Self", The Korean Cultural Center, Houston, Texas
2016 "Last Known Locations", The Little Raven Gallery, San Francisco, California
Group Exhibitions
2022 “HAPCHANG 합창", Stage Restaurant, Honolulu, HI
2022 “함께” BAS Bookshop, Honolulu, Hawaii
2021 “Brooklyn Seoul”, Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, Brooklyn, NY
2021 “Home Grown”, Gallery ‘Iolani, Honolulu, HI
2020 “The Price of Everything and the Value of Nothing”, Thinkspace Gallery with Scope Immersive Miami Beach, 6009 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA
2020 “Mother Earth: We Are All One”, Thinkspace Gallery, 6009 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA
2020 “Exploring the New Contemporary Movement Vol. 7”, Pow Wow x Thinkspace Gallery, 449 Cooke St., Honolulu, HI
2019 “First Friday”, Hawaii State Art Museum HiSAM Gallery, 250 South Hotel St., Honolulu, HI
2018 INTERSECTIONS: Considering Imbalance, Kahilu Theatre, Juror: Andi Campognone, Kamuela, HI
2018 "Pattern", Cactus Gallery, LA, CA
2017 "EIGHT", Art Room Gallery, Fort Worth Community Arts Center, Fort Worth, TX
2017 "BAD GIRLS", Cactus Gallery, LA, CA
2017 "Six: Small Works," Art Room Gallery, Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
2015 “Spring Show Exhibition”, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
2014 “Spring Show Exhibition”, Academy of Art University, San Francisco, CA
2014 “Dirty Works”, Wicked Grounds, San Francisco, CA
2013 “Spring Show Exhibition”, Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, CA
Publications and Presentations
“O‘ahu Artist Lauren Hana Chai Explores Her Korean Heritage,” Hawaii Business Magazine, August 8th, 2023: https://www.hawaiibusiness.com/oahu-artist-lauren-hana-chai-explores-korean-heritage-honolulu-museum-of-art/
“호눌룰루 미술관, 채하나 초대전,” KBFD TV Hawaii, August 14th, 2023: https://kbfd.com/?p=10105
“Hawai'i artist Lauren Hana Chai finds harmony in an in-between world,” ArtDaily, August 23rd, 2023: https://artdaily.com/news/160263/Hawai-i-artist-Lauren-Hana-Chai-finds-harmony-in-an-in-between-world
“3 Creatives On the Link Between Art and Wellness,” Related Life and Artrepreneur, September 8th, 2022: https://www.myrelatedlife.com/features/wellness-features/3-creatives-on-the-link-between-art-and-wellness/
”KHNL-HON (NBC) — Hawaii News Now at Ten,” August 28, 2022: http://mms.tveyes.com/MediaView/?c3RhdGlvbj0yNDY1JlN0YXJ0RGF0ZVRpbWU9MDglMmYyOCUyZjIwMjIrMDElM2EyMiUzYTQ0JkVuZERhdGVUaW1lPTA4JTJmMjglMmYyMDIyKzAxJTNhMjMlM2EzMSYmcGxheXN0b3A9MDglMmYyOCUyZjIwMjIrMDElM2EyMyUzYTIyJnBhcnRuZXJpZD03MzEzJiZoaWdobGlnaHRyZWdleD0mbW9kZWRpdG9yZW5hYmxlPXRydWUmbW9kZWRpdG9yZGVzdGluYXRpb25zPTQmJmV4cGlyYXRpb249MDklMmYyNyUyZjIwMjIrMDElM2EyMiUzYTQ0LjAwMCZpbnN0YW50UGxheT1UcnVlJnNpZ25hdHVyZT03Y2YwMTYzNDM4OGYwMTg5MzA4MmFmYjM5YTgxYTk4Mg==
“Lauren Hana Chai: Messages of Faith, Hope and Love through Art,” Artrepreneur Art Business Journal Podcast, January 4, 2022: http://abj.artrepreneur.com
“The Little Death: Lauren Hana Chai @ Thinkspace Projects {Project Rooms),” Juxtapoz Magazine, June 24, 2020: https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/painting/the-little-death-lauren-hana-chai-thinkspace-projects-project-room/
"Pecha Kucha HNL: Emotion," Hawaii State Art Museum, January 22, 2020: http://www.pechakucha.org/cities/honolulu
”Touch Base in Seoul”, KBS World Radio, August 20, 2019: http://world.kbs.co.kr/service/program_listenagain.htm?lang=e&procode=korea_24
“[월드피플+] 한국계 미국인 여성 작가, 행방불명된 어머니 찾는 사연 “, Seoul News 서울 신문, May 4, 2019: http://nownews.seoul.co.kr/news/newsView.php?id=20190504601004
“Honolulu artist traces her missing mother's footsteps across the globe“, NBC News, May 2, 2019: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/honolulu-artist-traces-her-missing-mother-s-footsteps-across-globe-n998601
“An Artist Searches for Her Missing Mother”, Hyperallergic Magazine, February 13, 2019: https://hyperallergic.com/484613/an-artist-searches-for-her-missing-mother/
“Hawaii Storytellers: How I Make Ends Meet”, Honolulu Civil Beat, October 22, 2018: https://www.civilbeat.org/upcoming-events/hawaii-storytellers-how-i-make-ends-meet/
Hawaii Business Magazine, September 11, 2018: https://www.hawaiibusiness.com/coworking-spaces/
"I just want to give her a hug", Honolulu Star Advertiser, May 3, 2018: http://www.staradvertiser.com/2018/05/03/tgif/artweek/lauren-hana-chai-captures-search-in-last-known-locations/
"Pecha Kucha HNL: ♀," Honolulu Museum of Art School, August 11, 2017: http://www.pechakucha.org/cities/honolulu
"Effect of Paris Climate Decision on Houston Energy, and Koreans in Houston: Friday’s Show (June 2, 2017)," NPR Houston Matters, June 2, 2017: http://www.houstonmatters.org/show/2017/06/02/koreans-in-houston-and-longtime-columnist-ken-hoffman-fridays-show-june-2-2017#more-45210
"[뉴스풍경] 한국계 미국인 화가의 북한그림 전시회," Voice of America Korea (VoA) 미국의 소리, May 12, 2017: http://www.voakorea.com/a/3849634.html
"채하나 작품 전시회," Korea Daily Texas 중앙 일보, May 26, 2017: http://www.koreadaily.com/news/read.asp?branch=DA&art_id=5296410"채하나 작가 ‘자아를 찾아서’ 미술 전시회 개최," Korea Daily Texas 중앙 일보, May 18, 2017: http://www.koreadaily.com/news/read.asp?page=1&branch=DA&source=DA&category=&art_id=5273869
"Fine Art Alum Lauren Chai Sends Love to Her Missing Mother With Series of Paintings," Academy of Art Newspaper, March 2016: http://academyartunews.com/newspaper/2016/03/lauren_chai.html
"LAUREN CHAI’S ‘DREAM OF THE FISHERMAN’S WIFE’," Juxtapoz Magazine, August 10, 2013: https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/erotica/lauren-chais-dream-of-the-fishermans-wife/
Murals
POW! WOW! Hawaii 2023
POW! WOW! Hawaii 2022
The Blind Ox 829 Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu, HI
POW! WOW! Hawaii 2020
Surfrider x Permablitz Ocean Friendly Garden Kakaako, Honolulu, HI
Impact Hub Honolulu 1050 Queen St, Honolulu, HI
Kaneohe Elementary School 45-495 Kamehameha Hwy, Kaneohe, HI
Shorefyre 2446 Koa Ave, Honolulu, HI
Shorefyre International Marketplace 2330 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu, HI
Maguro Spot 2441 Kūhiō Ave, Honolulu, HI
Pono Home Essentials Office Private Residence
Planned Parenthood 839 South Beretania St., Honolulu, HI
Lauren Hana Chai is known for contrasting her traditional Korean upbringing with her modern American life and including a personal story or cultural narrative to accompany each piece. As the first in her family born in America, she was raised by her South Korean grandparents in Hawaii. She moved across the Pacific to San Francisco to study at the Academy of Art University. After some time following the technique-based curriculum, Lauren says she relished breaking the rules and mixing abstract elements into the work. Her current series places side by side traditional elements, such as Korean folk art and Buddhist temple architecture, and modern elements such as interracial relationships or sexually charged figures. She has been featured in NBC News, KBS World Radio, Houston NPR, and the Honolulu Star Advertiser.