Artist Biography
Ger Xiong was born in Thailand and immigrated to the United States in 1993 as a Hmong refugee of the Vietnam War. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts with an Emphasis in Metals and Jewelry at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and his Master of Fine Arts at New Mexico State University. He received a ten month Fulbright Fellowship from 2019-2020 to research and collaborate with Hmong artisans working in silversmithing and textiles in Chiang Mai, Thailand through the University affiliation of the Faculty of Social Science, Chiang Mai University.

Artist Statement
The erasure of Hmong history and culture has long been a part of our identity. As stateless people, we are continuously living within various dominant nation states; learning their culture, language, customs, and history. Through my Hmong American experience, my work looks at the navigation and negotiation of cultural identity through the lens of assimilation, migration, and colonization, reflecting loss, commodification, and the resilience of being Hmong. Jewelry, adornment, objects, and textiles are used as a tool of storytelling and documenting our history and culture throughout our migration. Colors, patterns, symbols, and visual narratives are different ways to represent my cultural identity. My work seeks to connect the past to the present and is essential to show how I balance between these cultures while holding onto the importance of my Hmong identity within a dominant American society.

Email: gxiong55@gmail.com