May Sun (born 1954) is a Los Angeles–based artist known primarily for her public art projects. Sun works in the mediums of sculpture, mixed media, photography and installation. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. She was born in

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

, China, moved to

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

at the age of two with her family and immigrated to the United States in 1971 to attend the

University of San Diego The University of San Diego (USD) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in San Diego, California, United States. Chartered in 1949 as the independent San Diego College for Women and San Diego University ...

. "May Sun often refers to aspects of her Chinese heritage in her work, which consistently crosses cultural and political boundaries as well as the boundaries traditionally separating art forms and disciplines." Her installation "UnderGround" is in the permanent collection of the

Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA) is a contemporary art museum with two locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near the Walt Disney Concert Hall. MOCA's ori ...

. Her multi-media installation "L.A./River/China/Town" premiered at the

Santa Monica Museum of Art The Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (ICA LA; formerly known as the Santa Monica Museum of Art) is a contemporary art museum in Los Angeles, California, United States. As an independent and non-collecting art museum (or kunsthalle), it e ...

's ''Art in the Raw'' series in 1988, and the MOCA-produced radio version of the installation won a Silver Award from the

Corporation for Public Broadcasting The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB; stylized as cpb) is an American publicly funded non-profit corporation, created in 1967 to promote and help support public broadcasting. The corporation's mission is to ensure universal access to ...

. Her installation "Fugitive Landing", created at Capp Street Project in San Francisco, moved on to the

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

List Visual Arts Center Established in 1950, the List Visual Arts Center (LVAC) is the contemporary art museum of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is known for temporary exhibitions in its galleries located in the MIT Media Lab building, as well as its admin ...

in 1991 and to the Asia Society Galleries in New York City in 1994. She has won numerous awards and fellowships, including two

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

Visual Artist's Fellowships and a Getty Fellowship for the Visual Arts. Sun received her B.A. in Art (Painting/Sculpture/Graphic Arts) from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

and attended the MFA program at Otis Art Institute (now

Otis College of Art and Design Otis College of Art and Design is a private art and design school in Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1918, it was the city's first independent professional school of art. The main campus is located in the former IBM Aero ...

), Los Angeles. She was on the faculty at

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a Private university, private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for ...

, and is a visiting artist and lecturer at art schools and colleges nationally.

Selected exhibitions

* ''Doin' It in Public: Feminism and Art at the Woman's Building'', a Pacific Standard Time exhibition, Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, California, 2012. * ''Unjustified'', curated by Kerry James Marshall, Apex Art, New York, New York, 2002.

Public art

Sun's

public art Public art is art in any Media (arts), media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and phy ...

commissions include the Hollywood and Western Red Line Subway Station in Hollywood, CA; Union Station Gateway Center, Los Angeles; City Hall in Culver City;

Warner Center Warner Center is a master-planned neighborhood and business district development in the Canoga Park and Woodland Hills neighborhoods of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles, California.Station 84(Woodland Hills) an(Canoga Park) serve Warn ...

, Woodland Hills; San Antonio International Airport, San Antonio, Texas; the Best Friends Animal Society in

Mission Hills, Los Angeles Mission Hills is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. It is near the northern junction of the Golden State Freeway (Interstate 5 (California), I-5) and the Interstate 405 (California), San Diego Freewa ...

; the Rose Kennedy Greenway in Boston, Massachusetts and the

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known as RFK, was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 64th United States attorney general from January 1961 to September 1964, and as a U.S. senator from New Yo ...

Inspiration Park at the site of the former Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Her installations and public art projects are heavily researched and she draws inspiration from the history and surroundings of the site.

List of Sun's public commissions

* Robert F. Kennedy Inspiration Park, in collaboration with Richard Wyatt. Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, Ambassador Hotel site. Gonzalez/Goodale Architects (Pasadena, CA) and AHBE Landscape Architects (Los Angeles, CA). Commissioned by the Los Angeles Unified School District. Installed 2010. Received Honor Award from Westside Urban Forum's 2012 Design Awards, 2005. * Flow (bronze floor inlays), Crown City Center Office Building, Langdon Wilson Architects (Los Angeles, CA). Commissioned by Investment Development Services, Pasadena, California, 2004. Installed 2005. * Echoes of St. Francis, outdoor sculpture for the Northeast Valley Animal Shelter, Department of Animal Services. Commissioned by the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles, California. Installed 2007. * Walking the River, San Antonio International Airport Terminal Renovation Project: member of design team with Marmon Mok Associates and Davis, Durand-Hollis, Rupe (San Antonio, TX). Designed terrazzo floor. Commissioned by the City of San Antonio, Texas. Installed 2004. Received

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

Certificate of Recognition Award. * Sky Coyote, outdoor sculpture and integrated artwork for lobby, Warner Center office building, Poliquin Kellogg Design Group (Woodland Hills, CA). Commissioned by Lennar Partners (Irvine, CA), Woodland Hills, California. Installed 2005. * Chinese Chess Plaza, Central Area Corridor, Central Artery/Tunnel Project, new plaza design for gateway to Chinatown. Commissioned by Massachusetts Highway Department and Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Boston, Massachusetts. Installed 2007. * City of Dreams/River of History], east portal, Union Station Gateway Center. Lead Artist, with Richard Wyatt and Ehrenkrantz & Eckstut Architects (Los Angeles, CA). Commissioned by Catellus Development (Los Angeles, CA) and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Metropolitan Transit Authority. Installed 1996. * La Ballona (outdoor sculpture in reflecting pool), City Hall, Culver City, California. CHCG Architects (Pasadena, CA) Commissioned by the City of Culver City, CA. Installed 1995. * Listening for the Trains to Come (outdoor fence sculpture), commissioned by the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, Los Angeles, California. Installed 1993. * Hollywood Blvd. and Western Ave., Red Line Subway Station. Collaborative station design with Escudero Fribourg Architects (Los Angeles, CA), and specific art elements throughout station. Commissioned by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority, Los Angeles, California. Installed 1999.

References

in ''Artforum International'', Feb. 1989, Vol. 27 Issue 6, p. 141. * "L.A./River/China/Town: May Sun, Peter Brosius and Tom Recchion Collaborate to Shape a Piece of History" in ''High Performance'', Summer 1989, Vol. 12 Issue 2, pp. 22–27.
Mixing It Up II: Jolene Rickard, Robbie McCauley, Judy Baca, May Sun
1989. Video recording by Academic Media Services, University of Colorado, Boulder. * Review of exhibition featuring the mixed-media work of May Sun at the B-1 Gallery in New York City in ''

Arts Magazine ''Arts Magazine'' was a prominent American monthly magazine devoted to fine art. It was established in 1926 and last published in 1992. History Founding Launched in 1926 and originally titled ''The Art Digest,'' it was printed semi-monthly from ...

''; Feb. 1990, Vol. 64 Issue 6, p. 106. * "Interview with May Sun" in ''Artweek'', February 7, 1991, Vol. 22, pp. 20–21. * "May Sun--Fugitive Landing: A Revolutionary at Sea" in ''High Performance'', Winter 1991, Vol. 14 Issue 4, p. 44. * ''Mapping Histories: Third Newport Biennial'', curated by Marilu Knode and Anne Ayres, 1991. *
Testimonies of the City: Identity, Community and Change in a Contemporary Urban World
', 2007, edited by Richard Rodger, Joanna Herbert, pp. 221–227. *
Public Art-Playing a Role in Neighborhood Revitalization
" by Nyla Arslanian in ''Discover Hollywood Magazine'', Summer 2011. *
Artists Talk About Public Art in Santa Monica
" by Lynne Bronstein in ''Santa Monica Mirror'', Aug. 2, 2011. * ''Art, Women, California 1950-2000: Parallels and Intersections'', edited by Diana Burgess Fuller, Daniela Salvioni, p. 228-229.
May Sun Studio
artist's website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sun, May 1954 births Living people American performance artists American people of Chinese descent American installation artists 20th-century American sculptors 21st-century American sculptors 21st-century American women sculptors 20th-century American women sculptors

Selected exhibitions

Public art

List of Sun's public commissions

References

Further reading