Rush X Bogin
Rush is an undergraduate sophomore at Stanford studying Economics. He is originally from Evergreen, Colorado, but recently relocated to Orange, California. He is a virtual fashion designer on the gaming platform Roblox. He has been on the platform for over ten years, designing clothing, hairstyles and accessories with over 50 million individual sales. As a consultant, he guides brands on how to move from traditional marketing to an immersive Roblox experience. He has worked with Adidas, Olivia Rodrigo, Elton John and Karlie Kloss to bring their brands to Roblox, introducing their products and personalities to a new audience. He is also the co-founder of CHRUSH, the first virtual-native brand to have a real-world release sold nationally at Walmart. He also does research in the communications department, is a staff writer for the Stanford Daily, a member of the Stanford Cheer team, and has produced the 2024 Stanford Gaieties.
Maria Chica Jimenez
Maria Chica Jimenez is a visual artist and second-year Stanford student interested in the intersections of public policy, art history, and human rights. She was born in Bogotá, Colombia, and bases her practice in Washington D.C. and California. Working predominantly in acrylic and oil paint, Maria is interested in types of abstraction that evoke the expansiveness and complexities of living, simultaneously exploring agency and care through figuration. Maria ultimately seeks to represent, nourish, and pay attention to the body as it exists within and radiates into community, applying this perspective to the social commentary within her artwork.
Isabella Garza
Isabella Garza is a second-year M.A. student in Center for East Asian Studies at Stanford University. Her research interests span Japanese culture, Japan in international relations, transnational history of East Asia, contemporary Japanese soft power relations, ethnicity, race, and identity in contemporary Japan, nationalism, colonialism and imperialism in East Asia.
Yiyi Gu
Yiyi Gu is a first-year M.A. student in Center of East Asian Studies at Stanford University. Her research interest lies in film, media, literature, and gender in contemporary East Asia. Before coming to Stanford, Yiyi finished her undergraduate studies at Emory University, double majoring in East Asian Studies and Film and Media Studies.
Tianyi Jiang
Tianyi Jiang, or Angelina, is a Class of 2028 undergraduate at Stanford University, where she is pursuing studies in Anthropology, Religious Studies, and Art. She is fluent in Chinese, English, and Spanish, and has developed a strong academic foundation through research on AI’s impact on art, language usage among ethnic minorities, and primitive religions. She is passionate about cultural and language preservation. She is also a dancer in traditional and ethnic Chinese dancing and started dancing when she was 5 years old. In her free time, she loves listening to classic and heavy metal music.
Maika Jones
Maika Jones is an MA candidate in East Asian Studies, with an interest in exploring the intersection between history, storytelling, and creative media. Her academic focus lies in how historical narratives are portrayed and reimagined through various forms of media, and how these adaptations shape public perception and cultural understanding.
Josephine Kim
Josephine Kim is a MA student at Stanford’s Center for East Asian Studies specializing in Korean art history. She is interested in the development of Korean modern art during the twentieth century with a particular focus on postcolonial Korea. She is also interested in the interdisciplinary connections between art and international law. Her master’s thesis examines the restitution of Korean looted cultural property during the Japanese colonial period. Josephine earned her B.A. in Art History from Boston College (2023) and she has held an internship in the Art of the Americas at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Jill Lyu
Jill Lyu is a graduate student in East Asian Studies at Stanford University, where she explores the intersection of art, technology, and cultural narratives. In her latest project, Jill reimagines the classic Dream of the Red Chamber through a feminist lens, blending traditional Chinese aesthetics with AI-powered co-creation. Her innovative film showcases the dynamic interplay between human creativity and AI agency, highlighting how technology can breathe new life into cultural heritage. By embracing AI’s role in art creation, Jill advocates for a harmonious collaboration between humans and machines to produce works that are both culturally rooted and forward-looking.
Paige Brittany Plater
Paige is a first-year student planning to study International Relations and Communication. She enjoys using media and journalism to tell important stories within her community. Currently, Paige serves on the Class of 2028 Freshmen Council as a representative for her dorm. She is a member of Stanford Women in Politics where she works with the Marketing team. She is also an Opportunity Fellow for the Stanford Daily, writing and filming for the Sports and Video sections. Paige is hoping to explore policy or broadcast journalism once she graduates.
Yue Wu
Yue Wu is a PhD student in Chinese Literature and Culture and a Knight-Hennessy Scholar at Stanford University. She is an independent art curator who believes deeply in the socially transformative power of art and artists. Her academic interests lie in avant-garde movements of the 1960s and art demonstrations in public spaces. She created a digital exhibition at China’s largest public contemporary art museum, the Power Station of Art, in Shanghai. She also coordinated the first overseas retrospective show of artist Xu Bing at Museum MACAN, the first in Indonesia to collect contemporary art. Yue holds an M.A. in Regional Studies–East Asia at Harvard with the honor of receiving the Fletcher Award for Outstanding Thesis, and a B.A. in Art History from New York University with magna cum laude and Presidential Honor Scholar awards. She was selected for a digital residency at Pro Helvetia Swiss Arts Council, and was recognized with the Emerging Curator Award in China. She is currently working with Seen Health, a culturally-focused, tech-empowered healthcare start-up, in providing senior care to Chinese immigrants in California.
Hongsun Yoon
Hongsun Yoon is a graduate student in East Asian Studies at Stanford University, sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea. A Korean diplomat since 2013, she has served in the Korean Embassy in Russia and the Consulate General in San Francisco. She focuses on Northeast Asian history, culture, and international relations with academic interests in the intersections of Korean foreign policy and Silicon Valley’s technology and innovation. Passionate about connecting the past with contemporary issues, she seeks to bridge academia and public engagement through innovative projects and diplomacy.
Banner image source: Public domain.
Watanabe Shikō (1683–1755), Flowers and Trees of the Four Seasons, early to mid-1700s, Japan. Folding Screen. Ink, color, gold, silver, and gilding on paper. Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund 2021.132. Cleveland Museum of Art.