Jacky Li was born in Brooklyn, New York and is 16 years old. He is currently a sophomore student at Fort Hamilton High School. He took the initiative to pursue photography by joining the NYU Future Imagemakers program. This program has given him a lot of experience and has helped him grow as a person and artist. In the future he hopes to continue to work on projects and build his portfolio.
I was gravitated towards a project on my childhood because I recently just turned 16. These images are a compilation of places where I spent most of my youth. My childhood had influences from both Chinese and Western culture. My grandparents played a big role in raising me. They provided the nourishment and culture for me as a kid but in terms of expression they gave me a lot of freedom. They have always been supportive of the way I express myself whether it be the way I dress or the piercings that I get. I know that they don’t understand me, literally because of the language barrier, but also because of where they are from. There has definitely always been a disconnect between me and my grandparents since I was a child and much more now.