Biography
Allen Vu was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. He is a documentary and fine art photographer and visual artist who received his Masters of Fine Arts at Washington State University and his Bachelors of Arts in Photo/media with a minor in Anthropology.
Through his mediums, he strives to educate and raise awareness on social issues in underserved communities. Themes of community and culture are always prevalent throughout his work. His work takes pride in exploring and addressing common themes within these communities and the youth and putting a spotlight on them. From the stereotypes, the model minority myth and the race relations to the juggling and balancing of the deal identity, the Asian American youth are forced to ask questions and explore what it all means.
Allen is also a passionate educator, he’s tutored elementary kids for years in English and literature, served as a college mentor for high school students, and was a teaching assistant in Photography at the University of Washington’s School of Art. Allen has always had a passion for helping his community and educating others on topics especially in underserved communities. Allen is a strong advocate for Asian American representation in the arts and higher education, these themes are always prevalent through his art and teaching.
Artist Statement
I am a photo/media artist and the founder of an art non-profit that is dedicated to supporting underrepresented youth artists and students in the South Seattle area. My creative practice and the work within my community are related as they seek to empower and represent my community.
In Asian families, we are often greeted by our loved ones with them asking if we’ve eaten yet. With my photographs, I strive to communicate and show these subtle feelings that we’ve felt throughout our lives. It’s love but it’s expressed as concern. When they ask - have you eaten yet and yes, I already ate – are both expressions of love but are only subtly recognized by those in our community. These feelings are often hard to present and express in words but with the imagery presented in photography, it becomes more welcoming to the feelings we associate with certain images. I take photographs of the community that I’m proud to be a part of. I take photos of people to document my community to preserve and celebrate our vibrant culture. Those same photos can easily express feelings of grief and protest when documenting more sorrowful events. I want my photographs to showcase the Asian American experience that I grew up with and will live through. I believe art gives us a chance to send messages and to give a voice to those who don’t have one, especially in lower income minority communities.
There are so many Asian diasporas living across the West but there’s a lack of representation of these Asian Americans within Western arts especially within institutions. My work takes pride in exploring and addressing common themes within these communities and the youth and putting a spotlight on them. From the stereotypes, the model minority myth and the race relations to the juggling and balancing of the identity duality, the Asian American youth are forced to ask questions and explore what it all means.
This practice allows me to not only showcase my pride of the Asian American diaspora, it also allows me to further navigate and understand my own identity as an artist, especially as a Vietnamese American artist. My art seeks to find an understanding of what it means to be that Asian American artist.