As a child growing up in Viet Nam, I learned paper folding to make my own toys when I was about ten,and now I often incorporate it into my artwork using mostly recycled materials. My artworks concentrate on the themes of environmental stewardship through the use of recycled materials, and on illustrating the multifaceted interactions between man and nature, plant and animal, pattern, shape and color.

My Origami also highlight the innate tensions between pattern and regularity of form, irregularity, spontaneity and emotion. I stress the use of mostly recycled materials in order to show that art can be both sustainable and affordable, and my goal of having my works displayed publicly, is to drive this environmental message forward for the public benefit.

I’m an employee of the Berkeley Public Library and I’ve been with BPL for over sixteen years. Whenever I could get my hands on damaged and deleted library books, CD and DVD discarded covers or boxes I would save and later use them for my artwork. My coworkers at the library gave me the nickname “Recycling Queen” and I carry it like a badge of honor through my art.

I use mostly recycled papers for my Origami folds – discarded, damaged and old books, magazines, catalogs, used calendars, newspapers and wrapping papers. I’m very passionate about using recycled materials and I would love to spread this reusable message to others, especially young people – that you don’t need fancy, new and expensive materials to make an interesting and beautiful artwork; just look around your environment.

In my almost forty years in California, I’ve seen lots of changes in cities’ public buildings, parks and
downtown areas in terms of seeing artworks added. I love this idea and would like to see more permanent artworks in cities’ public places that reflects the diversity of our cities. Most of us are immigrants from a distant land and we often bring and introduce to this new land our arts, games, foods, costumes and cultural heritages. These are important parts of who we are, the more we know the
better to bridge the gap of misunderstanding and ignorance about one another. And what’s a better way to show that other than in public streets, parks and buildings through art?

My origami pieces were sold to private collectors, to Roundtree Visuals Company in Emeryville, and The Alameda County Arts Commission. In November 2016, I was selected by the Mountain View Visual Arts Committee as one of the four finalists to do the artwork for the remodeled Mountain View Community Center which will be reopened in late 2017.