IRIS CHIU ART

I was diagnosed with my first cancer in my twenties. By the time I faced my third diagnosis in 2015, I had spent years moving between hospitals and treatments. During those difficult seasons, art became my refuge — the one place where pain gave way to something beautiful.

In 2014, I took an illustration course in Hong Kong and discovered a community of artists who became friends and mentors. When the third cancer came, I picked up my brushes again — this time to paint my own story. I entered a local art competition with a self-portrait I had painted during chemotherapy. It won First Runner-Up at the Asia Society’s “Life is Only One” exhibition.

In 2016, I moved to the United States and continued exploring the world of art. What started as a way to heal became a small business, and what began as experimentation led me to my true passion: oil paintings of wildlife. I find deep joy in observing animals in their natural surroundings — hummingbirds hovering at feeders, squirrels guarding their acorns, whales moving through silent waters.

Living with the lasting effects of years of illness has changed what I can do physically. But it has sharpened what I see. When I paint, I am fully present — focused on light, texture, the particular tilt of a bird’s head. Every painting is a small celebration of being alive.