STANDARDS

Core Art Standards: VA4, VA7, VA10

CCSS: R1, R2, R6

Between Fantasy and Reality

How does this artist establish perspective in her work?

Yuna Chen, 18, Gold Medal, Drawing and Illustration. Images courtesy of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and the Scholastic Art & Writing Award Winners of 2025

In what ways does this artist use color to convey meaning in her art?

Yuna Chen, 18, started creating art as a kid. Now Yuna is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in illustration at the University of Arts, London.

Images courtesy of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and the Scholastic Art & Writing Award Winners of 2025.

Yuna Chen

What inspired Avatar, above?

I created Avatar for my portfolio for art school. At the time, I had just seen a movie about a main character whose personal life and public life clash. This made me think about how social media allows us to adopt different identities that are often in tension with who we really are. That inspired me to think about the avatars people adopt online, which I tried to show with the big pink heads.

What was your working process?

I set two different goals for myself. First, I wanted to get my message across. Second, I wanted to work on my technical skills, specifically perspective. I started with the big heads—those came early in the process when I was drafting. From there, I added the figures. I used the bright pink to emphasize the contrast between fake online personas and real life. To create perspective, I used reference pictures. I used a photo of my sister, who is the main character in the middle of Avatar. In the beginning, the main character in the middle was yellowish. Then I used green for the shadows, which made the piece feel much brighter and more colorful all over.

Do you have a favorite artwork that you’ve made?

I feel that when it comes to art, there’s no pinnacle. You’re always improving. I’m still working toward something great, but I haven’t found it yet.

What advice do you have for other aspiring young artists?

It’s never too late to start, even if you feel like you’re behind everyone else. If you have passion and put in the work, art is always worth pursuing. If you have something to say to the world through your art, there are people who will appreciate it.

Yuna Chen received a Gold Medal for her drawing in the 2025 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

To learn more about this program, visit artandwriting.org

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