Lately, there seem to be more and more disasters in the world. With earthquakes, hurricanes, oil spills and wars permeating our daily consciousness, it appears that the speed of modern life does not give us time to consider and plan for critical situations. In this scope of the Earth's power, we become little ants and flies, dying by the thousands in disasters and conflicts. The shell as a protective vessel has always been an enigma for me; how does the mollusk transform such tiny particles into such a beautiful dwelling? How has it stumbled upon such intricate yet effective architectural structures? The shell represents the enigma of all creatures - the urge to live. When I hear the latest news, my urge is to hide, to escape, to find a secure place to find my shell. My sculptures, the shell dwellers, are beings conjured from an alternate universe where that urge can be immediately gratified; everyone carries their security around with them at all times. But more than that, they also carry around their stories for everyone to see. People they met float around their face while beaches, bridges and city-scapes cover their shells. Their fresco-like shell surfaces are modern-day versions of the ruins of Pompeii, where a language of pictures communicated to people from all walks of life and many parts of the world. Although I may want to hide at times, I know we can find common understanding among our stories if we show them to others.

Cynthia Tom is a visual multi-media artist, passionate about social justice, women’s issues and playing with the accepted norm. Surrealism is the platform for her ideas to ruminate, take form, solutions discovered and color to inspire.

    A seeker and philosopher about issues in her life, her ancestors and the community of women, she is inspired by dialog with friends and family, forming new themes and stories for her work. Collaboration and brainstorming are her playgrounds.

    Her work has been exhibited at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco, the De Young Museum, and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and various other galleries from New York to Washington to San Francisco. She lectures on her work, issues related to women, feminism in the arts and Asian American women in the arts, most recently for the College Art Association’s Annual Conference.

 Cynthia is included in the text book, “Women Artists of the American West”, edited by Susan Ressler, University of Purdue and “Traces of Migration and In-Betweeness: Poetics and Politics in Post-colonial Asian Women Artists”, by Laura Fantone PhD, SF Art Institute ,University of Padua Press, Italy.  Cynthia is currently Board President, Exhibitions Curator and Programs Chair of AAWAA, Asian American Women Artists Association.

    A third-generation Chinese American, Cynthia draws inspiration from divergent

cultures. The resulting contradictions are expressed in a variety of ways. Eastern and Western symbols often share space on the same canvas. Fanciful dresses portray a prophetic wish for people to raise their consciousness and her strong female images evoke a longing for freedom of expression and a life of choice.

    Symbols, cues and clues fill her art, which is described as “Cultural Surrealism”.

Cynthia’s paintings and installations persuade us to look beyond the aesthetic--to challenge stereotypes and traditional roles, questioning paradigms and

encourages our internal dialogue.

Drawing and painting portraits has always been at the core of my artwork. In my portraits I strive to express the passion and personality of my subjects and capture an inner aspect of who they are. My portraits evolve like improvisational dance. I sculpt in color and form, continuously transforming and remolding my image, like working with wet malleable clay. I am influenced and inspired by great Impressionist and Fauvist painters such as Monet and Matisse.

I view my work as a cultural intervention that utilizes formal strategies as a means of engaging a range of very personal historical and social issues.