Date of Award
Spring 5-22-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Department
Printmaking
First Advisor
Tyanna Buie
Second Advisor
Andrew Raftery
Third Advisor
Susanna Koetter
Abstract
Through You I Will Feel is an installation exploring my family’s archive and my relationship with my ancestral heritage. An abstracted simulation of my childhood home’s dining room, it examines how revisiting the family archive can reveal new information not only about the past, but also about the present and the future. The installation consists of five works which integrate printmaking and print-adjacent processes: a set of four lithographic prints, cyanotype and natural toning on fabric, inkjet-printing on shrink plastic, UV dye-printing on polymer clay tiles, and digitally printed wallpaper.
The written thesis is a culmination of my time at the Rhode Island School of Design, and delves into my journey as an artist, including my motivations, inspirations, and creative philosophies. Through my writing, I examine my upbringing as a third generation Chinese American, the loss of my father to lung cancer, my fascination with merging Chinese and American cultures, and my obsession with studying and situating my family’s archive. The title refers to the last lines of a poem my father wrote shortly before he passed in which he encourages us to live on in his stead. It serves not only as a reminder that he lives on through us, but that through the practice of art making and examining the archive, we can connect with something greater than ourselves.
Recommended Citation
Poon, Mitchell L., "Through You I Will Feel" (2026). Masters Theses. 1703.
https://digitalcommons.risd.edu/masterstheses/1703
Creative Commons License
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Included in
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