Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Thing.
Hi Jason, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I began making art because I needed a way to communicate when words were not enough. I was born in Burma (Myanmar), where my early life was shaped by conflict, displacement, and strong family bonds. These experiences followed me when I left home and lived in Malaysia for five years, a period marked by uncertainty and resilience. I eventually moved to the United States as a refugee, carrying with me memories of my mother, my culture, and a persistent feeling of being between places.
Art became a way to preserve what I feared losing. Working with my hands, particularly in ceramics and sculpture, allows me to slow down and reflect. I often return to simple, familiar forms such as flowers, fruit, and everyday objects. These repeated gestures reflect how memory resurfaces over time and are rooted in moments of care and survival from my childhood. Through craft, I transform personal history into shared experience.
I earned my BFA from Texas Christian University and later completed my MA at the University of Dallas, pursuing the American dream as an artist. Today, my practice explores migration, longing, and memory while sharing my culture and history. Through making, I have found a sense of belonging and a place I can call home in the United States, and I hope my work offers viewers space for reflection, connection, and peace.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey has not been kind or easy, especially as an artist. I have had to navigate many conflicting opinions while trying to speak honestly about what I have seen and lived through. At one point, I was told that there are no evil people in the world and that everyone acts only for survival. That idea struck me deeply, because it conflicted with my lived experience after witnessing suffering, violence, and human cruelty while moving through three different countries.
Some museum curators and professionals did not agree with my position or my statements. While not all curators share this view, there were moments when my work and perspective were questioned in ways that felt dismissive. It is painful to realize that art rooted in lived trauma and truth can be evaluated through such narrow frameworks. We live in a world shaped by undeniable events such as 9/11, the Holocaust, and the abuse and exploitation revealed in the Jeffrey Epstein files. These realities challenge the belief that all actions are simply a matter of survival.
Despite these challenges, my work continues to stand where I stand. I remain committed to telling the truth of my experiences, even when they are uncomfortable or contested. The road has been uncertain and often isolating, especially since I had to start from zero with no clear path forward and no option of going back. Yet these struggles have reinforced my resolve and strengthened my commitment to making art that confronts reality while holding space for memory, loss, and humanity.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My work centers on sculpture and ceramics, with a strong focus on contemporary craft as a way to tell stories that are difficult to express through language. I specialize in hand built ceramic objects that often take the form of flowers, fruit, bags, and everyday items. These forms come from personal memory and lived experience, especially my childhood, my relationship with my mother, and my journey through migration and displacement. Repetition plays an important role in my practice, as it reflects how memory returns over time and how healing happens slowly, through making.
I am known for transforming simple, familiar objects into vessels of meaning. What may first appear gentle or beautiful often carries deeper histories of loss, survival, and longing. My work explores themes of migration, memory, grief, and belonging, while also addressing broader issues such as war, inequality, and the innocence lost through violence. I use craft not only as a technique, but as a language rooted in care, labor, and time.
What I am most proud of is staying true to my voice, even when it has been challenged or misunderstood. My journey has required starting from zero, navigating cultural and institutional barriers, and continuing to make work without certainty or the option of going back. What sets me apart is that my work is inseparable from my lived experience. It is shaped by moving across countries, carrying memories forward, and building a sense of home through making. My practice is both personal and collective, offering viewers a space to reflect, remember, and find quiet moments of connection and peace.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
The Great Gatsby, To kill Mockingbird, and I also study religious books from all different religions
Pricing:
- $50
- $250
- $1500
- $2500
- $4500
Contact Info:
- Website: https://glasstire.com/2025/07/29/through-memory-migration-jack-hein-and-jason-thing/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonclayart/
