Jia (Sam) Shanguo (Photo – Saatchi Art)
Internationally-renowned conceptual artist Jia (Sam) Shanguo will share his artistic process and the concept behind his new original work ‘Diversity and Symbiosis,’ a collection of 30 original abstract pieces commissioned by the Pasadena Senior Center.
This year-long project is part of the Pasadena Senior Center’s celebration of 65 years of service to older adults in the San Gabriel Valley. PSC members interviewed for this fine art project hail from various countries, including India, Ecuador, China, England, Austria, Canada, and the Philippines. The exhibition of the work will open at the Center in fall 2025.
> The event is free for Pasadena Senior Center members and non-members, and reservations are suggested. To register or for more information, visit this website or call 626-795-4331.
Shanguo, an immigrant to the United States from Shandong province in China, was inspired by PSC members’ immigration stories to explore how journeys of leaving one country behind impact rebuilding lives in America. For the work, he interviewed many in the PSC community, and asked each interviewee to write down one sentence that “influences them the most in their lives” in their immigrant story. Using typography as the basis for each piece, Shanguo will “print the sentence, letter by letter, and engrave those into the oil painting,” and subsequently will layer multiple colors over the canvases to represent “the lives of the people that are also built layer by layer.”
Shanguo, an MFA graduate from the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, conceptualized this original idea upon arriving in California in 2022, a journey he embarked on to foster a better career path and grow his reputation on the international art state.
