![\"Inspired](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/web-MAIN-P1-Monica-earring.jpg\")
Inspired by nature and animals, she enjoys learning characteristics and behaviors that enable subjects to \u201cthrive in their environment,\u201d she said. \u201cMaybe then we can learn how to respect our planet and the sentient beings we share it with.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her love for animals is exquisitely portrayed as fabric collages in her book. Noting that her fascination stems from the shapes, sizes and personalities of these creatures, Hui Hekman added that although \u201chumans are but one kind of animal among countless species; animals, whether a fuzzy kitten or ravenous shark, deserve my respect and spark my curiosity.\u201d<\/p>\n
As with all of her fabric collages, Hui Hekman researches the subject, sketches, and forms a ceramic sculpture used as a reference for computer illustrations that become patterned as a collage, printed out in pieces, attached to fabrics, cut accordingly and sewn together using a sewing machine. She learned to sew from her grandmother, who was a seamstress.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach time I pull a subject into a different physical space, whether it\u2019s 2D, 3D or digital, it\u2019s translated in a way I wouldn\u2019t expect,\u201d she explained. \u201cAnd with each translation, I lose a little more control and the art takes on its own unique look. That\u2019s why I chose to combine drawing, sculpture, computer graphics and sewing to create each book illustration.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hui Hekman plans to publish two additional art\/poem books: \u201cAnimals In Flight\u201d and \u201cAnimals Underwater.\u201d<\/p>\n
Encouraged by her parents, Hui Hekman said her passion for art began at an early age. Birthday presents included reams of computer paper for drawing as much as she was inclined to do so.![](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/bullfrog_collage.jpg\")
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\u201cMy father, a mathematician, appreciated and collected art,\u201d she explained. \u201cI drew a lot and loved to sew with my grandmother. I still gravitate to both activities; they\u2019re therapeutic. I wouldn\u2019t be where I am today without my family and friends who supported my passion for the arts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hui Hekman graduated with a degree in interdisciplinary computing and the arts from the UC San Diego. She worked as a designer for Whole Foods Market in La Jolla, followed by a stint with University Readers, an academic publishing company, designing book covers and marketing materials until the yearning for fine art outweighed her status within the corporate world.<\/p>\n
\u201cI missed working with my hands,\u201d she said. \u201cI missed the focus of finishing a project that would incorporate all of my skills, so I embraced my art full time. I surrounded myself with other artists at Glashaus Studios so I wouldn\u2019t feel alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Glashaus Studios, located in San Diego\u2019s Barrio Logan, hosts 21 art studios for glass-blowing, ceramics, mixed-media, painting, sculpture, jewelry and woodworking artists.<\/p>\n
Hui Hekman\u2019s work in Glashaus Studios expanded to metalsmithing, a skilled craftmanship that she describes as being both folk art and fine art. And true to form, not a single piece of jewelry is crafted from prefabricated elements and everything is inspired by plants, animals and landscapes. Themes include desert landscapes, ocean waters, whales, cat eye succulents and beetles. Her first ring was modeled after the Fig Eater Beetle.<\/p>\n
\u201cFig Eater Beetles develop into adult beetles from larva underground when all of a sudden, they\u2019re flying around \u2014 aboveground \u2014 everywhere,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen they can no longer fly, they land on the ground and most likely get stepped on. People often have a visceral reaction to them as icky and a bit creepy, but I think they\u2019re beautiful. I love looking at the beauty in all things.\u201d![\"Inspired](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Monica-Screenshot-167x300.png\")
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Hui Hekman added that while City Heights is a growing artistic community, next-door neighbor North Park is exploding with a multitude of venues that support artists.<\/p>\n
Hui Hekman\u2019s measures her artistic success by her ability to connect people with an environment that she considers precious.<\/p>\n
\u201cLife must be experienced with our eyes and our hands,\u201d she concluded. \u201cWe must live out in the world, not through TVs and computers. Discover the little things. Nothing should be taken for granted. Everything is precious.\u201d<\/p>\n