#MakingThings 🖍️ “What am I really interested in, and how do I bring it into the 21st century?” Those are two questions @davheo (David Heo) asks himself about his work — intricate paintings of mythological man-eating sharks, allegorical Korean folklore and larger-than-life nostalgic heroes.
David grew up in Georgia and moved to Chicago to attend @saicpics , where he developed his visual techniques. “I couldn’t afford to buy paint and canvas every two weeks then,” he says. That led him to more affordable mediums: paper and crayons. But what came about as a necessity soon became a vital part of his artistic journey. Exploration, he explains, “forces me to slow down. The goal is to not just make a lot of paintings. The goal is to live as creatively as possible every day.”
David, now based in Chicago, has expanded his craft into murals, ceramics and soon, community activated pop-ups. “I am very curious about exploring more on the question, ‘What does contemporary Asian-American culture look like today?’ — whether through direct collaboration with other AAPI creatives or self-initiated releases.”
Music by @the.k.club
hello! here’s some good documentation of the recent project i just finished in seoul. i titled this mural, 𝑨 𝑷𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒊𝒎𝒆, a manifestation on the duality of cultures, a 14-hour difference, and the quiet ways time can move when someone steps into and activates a space.
i was thinking a lot about how time can feel stretched, condensed, or even still depending on where you are and who you’re with. i wanted the room to hold that feeling — like a soft pause button in the middle of a busy day.
if you’re curious about how it came together, i shared a reel a little while back showing the process. ty again to @dscape_thecafe for trusting me on this concept. if you ever find yourself there, maybe even on a first date, wishing you all the best :)
📸 @mendoksaii
howdy yall. proof of life :)
update: i moved out of chicago after calling it home for the past sixteen years, which still feels a little unreal, but i trust my gut.
over the last decade, i’ve grown a lot as a person and as an artist. i’ve achieved almost every dream i wrote down when i was 24. which is really tight. more than anything, it reminds me that i can trust myself to always turn intention into reality.
bc what is success except proof that you actually lived according to your own values and vision.
with that, i’ve written down some new dreams to pursue and updating the ones i haven’t been able to knock out yet, both artistic and personal. wish me luck.
howdy. feb. dump. i’m relieved the snake year is finally over bc the shedding was intense. there were enough big lessons and life changes that it felt right to mark it in a permanent way.
idk. growth isn’t linear and rarely feels good while it’s happening. sometimes it looks like loss before it becomes progress.
but it’s fire horse year now, so i’m gonna trust the changes and let the momentum carry me where it needs to.
Study for 𝘌𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘦, 2026
Colored pencil and crayon on paper
9 × 12 in. (22.9 × 30.5 cm)
hi. research has been super inspiring, and i’m still working through new composition sketches. which is frustrating sometimes but they’re getting there.
i hope you enjoyed learning some personal and historical context behind me and my work. here’s a little more though on a topic i wanted to expand on.
it’s a longer one, so maybe save it for when you’re cozy.
stay warm and take care 🕊️
howdy. with everything i shared the other day, here’s a dump of additional pics from current research. mostly references, screenshots, and inspirations. there’s some past works that have been resurfacing for me lately too.
• internet screenshot
• a collage from 2020
• chinese exclusion act propaganda, 1800s
• huey newton visits china, 1971
• manga and 만화 compositions (csm)
• a collage from 2021
• desegregation protest, 1960s
• neat use for ig carousel
• a collage from 2020
• civil rights movement, 1960s
• malcolm + yuri kochiyama’s friendship, 1963
• an allegory of plato’s cave
• 1/2 of diptych painting, 2023
• 2/2 of diptych painting, 2023
• 엄마, 형, grimace and the hamburglar, 1999
• minhwa painting from joseon, 1700s
• quote from james baldwin, 1966
• a childhood artwork, 1996
• an adulthood artwork, 2026
it’s also okay to take a break from the news rn. it’s a lot.
stay safe pls and don’t burn yourself out from care.
dang. my bad. i really underestimated everyone’s attention span 🙂↕️ ty for being interested. here’s the entire video. i explained a little yesterday but tldr: instagram feels so bad lately and i want to figure out a way to make it work more for me.
nice. excited to pin this as a digital primary source.
hopefully, it’ll give more context to past works but also help frame some of the newer concepts that will be informing the pieces i’ll be making this year.
howdy. it’s strange to think that 2026 is only a few days away, especially since this year felt so long. while going through photos for a year dump, i was reflecting on what 2025 was for me.
some context. at the end of 2023, i was extremely burnt out. i felt disconnected and unsure of what i even believed the role of an artist should be.
when 2024 began, i made a scary but necessary decision to not take on any solo shows for a couple of years. instead, i wanted to engage more deeply with my city. i didn’t like the feeling that i had to keep doing cool shit in nyc and los angeles. i wanted to make chicago cooler instead.
2025 arrived and it wasn’t any easier. despite everything, i found myself reconnecting with my practice. once my cup felt full again, i asked myself a simple question.
where should i pour the overflow?
typing this out now, i’m proud of myself for carving out space for a much needed community in chicago. regardless how heavy it felt, this year taught me how to truly show up for people and excite them as an artist, in ways the art world stopped encouraging.
grateful for my loved ones, and for the new pals who came into my life. tysm for cracking earth and planting creative seeds with me this year. i’m excited to continue growing and to reap the fruits of that together.
thank you for reading. i hope 2026 is kind to you.
(it’ll be the year of the horse too. lfg)
A few posts won’t be enough to capture what last night meant, so it will be a little series. This supper club took shape slowly—week by week, conversation by conversation, and discovering how collaboration becomes its own language when the goal is shared
At the center of every meeting, every dish, every decision was the same question we always seem to come back to—what feels like home? Not just a place, but a memory, a tradition, a flavor that brings you back without warning
Thank you for sitting with us, listening to our stories, and letting our traditions fill the table. We hope, even if just for a moment, you felt a sense of home too
Photography: @potatoislike
hi. a little late, my bad. i’ve been losing track of time lately but here’s a dump of nov.
finishing stuff for two upcoming shows, and the supper club i’ve been organizing has been moving along. ngl. i’m very excited (and nervous) to see how it goes next monday.
ps. if you’re showing in miami rn, hope you crush itt.
pps. don’t forget to drink water if you’re going out.
hi. it’s been a while since i released something fun and for the people. over the past few years, i’ve gotten a lot of messages asking if i’d ever make and release new pokemon prints again. yeah! ofc. it just took some time.
i’m excited to share that this new series of four is out and will be available exclusively thru @drool_art until 12/8
howdy. here’s an oct dump. personally, it was a tough month. creatively tho, there was a lot of good.
i’m still exploring ways of building community through creativity and joy, not just the ordained artist/gallery/fair route. it’s been a lot, especially with everything going on here, but i feel good. it’s been cool learning what can feel sustainable (and real) for working artists today.
nice. also, i’m working on something fun with some friends and new folks. if you’re in chicago, i think it’s gonna be tightttt. excited to share more soon.
hope nov will be good. stay safe and take care.
“American Collectors (Riverside),” 2025
crayon and acrylic on canvas
60 x 48 in. (152.4 x 122 cm)
