YUMI SAKUGAWA is an Ignatz Awards nominated comic book artist and the author of I THINK I AM IN FRIEND-LOVE WITH YOU and YOUR ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO BECOMING ONE WITH THE UNIVERSE. Her comics have also appeared in The Believer, Bitch, the Best American Non­Required Reading 2014, The Rumpus, Folio, Fjords Review, and other publications. She has also exhibited multimedia installations at the Japanese American National Museum and the Smithsonian Arts & Industries Building. A graduate from the fine art program of University of California, Los Angeles, she lives in Los Angeles. Topics Discussed In This Episode: Drawing, writing, meditation, performance art, and engagement in multiple creative disciplines as an artistic practice and career. Being an extroverted introvert or an “ambivert”. Growing up as an Asian American student in both American and Japanese academic systems. Stream of consciousness and dream logic. Using meditation to supplement her mental health. How her meditation surfaces in her work visually. Rediscovering “fun” in the creative process. Using humor as a vehicle to explore and express darker subject matter. The importance of being a female Asian American artist under the projective narratives of both American and Asian patriarchy.   The fetishization of Asian American artists and women. Her part in helping other Asian American woman artists achieve visibility.  Mental health, personal boundaries, and keeping a balance in her personal relationships and art practice. Giving herself permission to take the time needed to slow down in order to be creative. www.artistdecoded.com