Where did you come up with the name?

There’s a double meaning for Hot Water Cool Art. Initially, I wanted to create content based on cultural differences. I’m Chinese, and when Chinese people go to a restaurant, they order hot water instead of cold water. Especially the older generation, like my mom, would always ask for hot water, even in the summer. Also, I like that it sounds simple and catchy—hot versus cool.

But then there is a second meaning. When I was brainstorming the name with some SVA faculty, they said the idiom “be in hot water” meant to put somebody in a difficult situation. I thought it was brilliant because I’m a very straightforward person, so when I do interviews . . . I want to be able to ask difficult questions and get very unfiltered and authentic answers.

Who has been your best guest so far, and who else are you hoping to get?

It’s a difficult choice. I mean, everybody! Everybody’s been great, very cooperative, and very passionate about this. I’ve interviewed artists, curators, and art fair founders. I appreciate all the help and all the resources I have.

Who else am I hoping to get? I want to interview a diverse range of artists in terms of nationality, cultural background, and practice in different types of art mediums. So far, I’ve had painters, ceramic artists, curators, cartoonists, and, in the future, photographers, sculptors, and even welding artists.

You graduated from MFA Computer Arts. How does that background apply to your interview show, if at all?

Yeah, that’s a good question. I studied Computer Arts and am currently a motion designer and multimedia designer. My work is mainly digital art, but I’ve become very fascinated by and inspired by fine artists. During my time at SVA, I learned the essential tools and technology so I can edit these videos and make graphics very compellingly.

Currently, Hot Water Cool Art is just a one-woman team. So it’s basically me doing everything! From writing the script and hosting the show to post-production and marketing, I would love some help scaling the platform and reaching more people in the art world, so please reach out if you’d like to join this journey.

Features

The MFA Computer Art graduate also works as a motion graphics designer for Bloomberg and others.