D&AD Meets: POC Creatives — Illustrator and Artist Joey Yu on flexibility, experiencing new cultures and the influence of hardworking parents

JY: Constant curiosity, trying to make sense of the world. When I was little...spending whole evenings and weekends sitting in the front of my parent’s shop looking out of the window. When you are in a confined space, I wonder whether it pushes your imagination further, because you have been set parameters, boundaries to test and play with?

I didn’t know exactly what career I was going end up doing when I went into the arts- all I knew is that I had to do something that related to all of that staring out of the window. People watching, working out stories from every day, daydreaming. I am still working it out though.

JY: One of the most exciting is maybe going to Brazil for a month by myself. It’s a million worlds away from London, and to fully immerse myself into a different culture and lifestyle is always a thrilling thing. I went last summer. I just remember my heart being constantly beating fast in my chest, wanting to spoon my eyes out, put them on a stick or something so I could see more- everything was so vivid.

JY: The first answer probably helps answer that one. Growing up in a working environment. My parents are incredibly hard-working, and I think the stereotypical career paths for POC don’t lean towards the creative because of the uncertainty, and the fluctuating nature of freelance work. But I’m stubborn and it made me want to try; they definitely instilled the need to work hard in whatever field I’m in.

JY: The most: the extreme sense of flexibility in my schedule that allows me to work to certain projects and to follow certain urges that take me. I make the decisions myself. Also collaborating with incredible people across creative fields.

Least enjoyable: dealing with invoices, emailing back and forth… just the regular things that come with freelance. Staring at a computer screen when you don’t want to be.

JY: Natural entry points into the industry. My university, like many art schools, is mostly white. To be honest, when I was applying to art foundation I was told by my teacher ‘it’s hard to get in’- which is so uninspiring for a young person to hear. I think tutors need to be more diverse in general, and they need to be going to sixth forms and colleges and explaining to students what career paths there are, what they need to do to get in.

JY: Listen to our opinions, ask our questions and recognise that there is work to be done.