All of half of me.

Mask Assignment

For this assignment we made our own masks with plaster and created an image of our own faces.

I debated on what to do for this assignment. At first I wanted the entire thing to look like a 能(nou-mask), which is a traditional Japanese mask used in plays and showings. However, while contemplating how and what to do, I was drawn to the idea of the mask revealing yet concealing.

A mask is something that people use to express something internal and yet at the same time hide the expression or feeling of one self.
To me this mask was used as a rite of passage. It was a way for me to communicate what is deep within me, yet at the same time hide what is really beneath everything.
Nationality and race is something you receive from your parents. It is not something gained through other ways. I am half American and half Japanese because my mother is American and my father is Japanese. I did not choose specifically such nationality, or randomly become such race. Instead it was given to me, and something I am going to pass down if I ever have children of my own.