Andrew Hem

BIOGRAPHY

Andrew Hem was born during his parents' flight from Cambodia as they were fleeing the Khmer Rouge genocide. He grew up poised to balance two cultures — the rural animistic society of his Khmer ancestors and the dynamic urban arts of the tough Los Angeles neighbourhood where his family eventually settled. Fascinated by graffiti at an early age, he honed his skills with graphics and composition on the walls of the city before following a passion for figure drawing to a degree in illustration from Art Center College of Design. 

Working in gouache, oil and acrylic, Hem weaves atmospheric, richly textured narratives in a vivid palette of twilight blues enlivened by swaths of deep red and splashes of golden light. His haunting impressions of culture and landscape evoke the life of the spirit through the visionary manifestation of memories and dreams.

Andrew Hem's work has been featured in several solo exhibitions, including Refuge, Dorothy Circus Gallery, London (2021); Fragmentz, Galerie Openspace, Paris (2019); Mountain full, Jonathan Levine Gallery, New York (2016); believe it, Merry Karnowsky Gallery, Los Angeles (2015); 16 Bars, Spoke Art Fair/Thinkspace, New York (2015); Dream but don't sleep, Merry Karnowsky Gallery, Los Angeles (2014) and Cold Waters, Lebasse Projects Gallery, California (2011). His work was also included in numerous group exhibitions, such as Super Awesome, Public Installation for Oakland Museum, California (2014); Go with the Flow, Villa Bottini Lucca, Italy (2012); Sur-Realism, Arcadia Gallery, New York (2012); Death and the Maiden, Roq La Rue Gallery, Seattle (2012) and Wild at Heart, Thinkspace Gallery, California (2012) among many others.

Hem received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2006 from Art Center College of Art and Design, California.

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