hello friend,
you may have noticed the reframing of @chenprints into @studiosansui .
Studio Sansui is a project exploring multilingual stories and print media across cultures.
this is a shift i’ve thought about for a while, and embodies the interdisciplinary mediums and diverse stories that I want to define our space here.
the name Studio Sansui is a reflection of the mountains and seas that have coexisted closely in the natural landscape of the many places i’ve called home: Taipei, Taiwan; Subic Bay, the Philippines; Saigon and Hanoi, Vietnam; San Francisco, California.
some background on the logo - Mandarin has ancient origins in pictograms to intuit meaning. this practice is reflected in the visual identity of Studio Sansui: towering mountains (山shan), and fluid water (水sui) reaching towards the sea. the illustrative quality of these characters aims to overcome language barriers and hopefully bring us closer together in shared understanding.
thank you for your support for @chenprints . i am so excited for the art and stories that we will create together. please reach out to me with stories, ideas, and for collaborations.
with love, ruby
(images in this post are photographed in Taipei and San Francisco, edited, and risograph printed.)
two recent design projects made with & for musical friends, leaning into scrapbooking & print media.
ty @same_spell@mohitsmusic
plzz hit my line for collabs 💌
Riso Memories is an archive zine of scraps salvaged from a year of print projects run with studiosansui in 2025. this year, the machine came into our lives. each artist that passed through left remnants of work in progress, strange and wonderful in their imperfection; a reflection of our blending, overlapping worlds.
all my love and gratitude to friends who have passed through - the studio is all of us, and grows with us.
riso printed and staple bound. 8 copies. each copy contains different project scraps.
micro/macro worlds is sticker pack 2.0 by @studiosansui exploring the scale of problems we confront every day - from miniscule and tame (insect world) to colossal and unfathomable (deity world). where do we place ourselves in relation to these worlds? where do we assert control and surrender control?
visual motifs from bugs and buddhist-taoist sculpture.
card header riso printed and hand cut, stickers die-cut.
‘Good Things Come In Pairs’ 「好事成雙」 is a @studiosansui zine struggling with the dichotomy of honoring my home culture and fighting its repressive, restraining force. the number two is considered lucky, and visual pairs frequently symbolize luck and love in heteronormative marital contexts. how can lucky pairs evolve to represent queer love, and is queer liberation within cultural bounds possible?
riso printed at home on french paper, hand cut and hand bound.
‘i exist in pluralities’ is a poetry accordion zine that unravels my third culture identity in the context of taiwan and america, my two homes with complex colonial pasts. photos taken on angel island in the bay area and in danshui, new taipei city.
risograph printed and hand-cut at home.
the rumors are true … studio sansui has stickers! 🌟 inspired by taiwan’s everyday and ever present, the objects in our periphery, the powerful and quiet.
this was so fun to make and only the first wave — dm me or catch one of my future booths to grab a pack!
card header riso printed and hand cut, stickers die-cut.
痛就是通！is a @studiosansui print and is a phrase from foot reflexology and TCM. it implies that the experience of pain when applying targeted pressure to your feet is good: that pain signals healing and care, for the rest of your being.
this phrase has felt close to me through the pinpointed pressure i’ve applied to specific areas of my life, and acknowledging that pain from confrontation and friction can ultimately be good.
4”x6” postcard was riso printed at @gloweeing ‘s studio in san francisco.
this year, I created two zines with poems and photos from my time in taipei and tokyo, and my life in SF with my community. they are my start to bookbinding and exploring the medium of riso. enjoy :~)
