Richmond resident Dawn Lo found drawing to be a great pass time in her home city of Hong Kong.
That is, until she immigrated to Canada and found her passion in communicating about diversity through art.
In 2006, as a young girl moving to a new country, Lo grew from drawing for fun to taking classes that helped create her own style.
Her personal growth and development in art became a reflection of her experiences growing up in a new environment.
Art became an outlet for Lo to open up conversations around diversity and motivated her to pursue a career in illustration after graduating from Emily Carr.
Because of her attachment to drawing as a child, Lo often searches for opportunities to work in areas related to children’s art and to connect with kids.
Her artworks are inspired by her mix-culture experiences and the goal of opening up conversations around what it’s like to be an Asian-Canadian and the topics of diversity.
She uses mostly uses gouache – a mix of acrylic and water colour paint – as well as a mixture of gouache and graphite in her pieces to portray her messages.
Lo has contributed to the city’s art scene particularly with the re-branding of the Richmond Children’s Arts Festival, publishing children’s books and a recently completed mural at Thompson Community Centre.