Falls Church Graphic Artist’s First Show Through Public Library Incubator Program

Wouldn’t it be a more creative world if our public libraries helped showcase local artists’ works?
Well, the Arlington County Public Library system does just that through its new arts program – The Incubator – where “opportunities and space for artists to showcase their work in a public setting” are provided to “spotlight local artists and community arts so that a greater number of diverse perspectives can be seen and more voices can be heard.”
And one Falls Church resident and graphic artist, Regina Chua, just had her first solo art exhibit “The Immigrant Experience” through the program, mounted Sept. 3 at the Columbia Pike Branch of Arlington Library next to the Arlington Career Center at 816 S. Walter Reed Dr.
The Falls Church Independent interviewed Chua about her background, her first exhibition in the gallery, and what she thinks about The Incubator program.
Near a curated collection of books on themes of immigration, Chua’s “The Immigrant Experience,” presents a “humble collection” of “a heartfelt exploration of the immigrant experience through portraits that capture the complex feelings around identity and belonging,” she wrote.

Chua emigrated to the United States from the Philippines during her high school years.
“Regina Chua is a Filipino-American artist whose work featured here explores the complexities of the immigrant experience — from holding onto one’s roots like a prayer; to the bittersweet reality of being seen as a perpetual outsider; and to the somber feeling of homesickness,” her exhibition listing says. “Through her work, she invites the viewer to reflect on the universal struggle of finding one’s place in the world.”
According to Chua, her three featured graphic design paintings examine the swirl of complex and personal emotions surrounding her immigration experience:
- Sampaguita & Stripes: “Represents the pride and determination to hold onto one’s cultural identity like a prayer.”
- Forever a Tourist: “Captures the bittersweet reality of being seen as an outsider despite naturalization and citizenship.”
- Homesickness: “Expresses the somber feeling of longing and FOMO experienced by those who have left their homeland.”
Given the salience of “The Immigrant Experience” to the American experience – and in the heated 2024 presidential campaigns – Chua’s digital paintings touch on universal sentiments and themes of interest to every sort of visitor to the library.

For Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh, the new Incubator program, and Chua’s new showing inaugurating the series, will help serve as an “all-ages catalyst [that] will allow community members — ranging from teens to older adults — to participate in a creative community dialogue and to express themselves.”

On her website, Chua describes herself as Concept Artist and Character Designer: “Regina is an illustrator who breathes life into characters with her vibrant, painterly art style.” Her “work has been featured in artist alleys and the public library. When she’s not immersed in her latest project, you’ll find her sipping bubble tea while flipping through a book, drawing inspiration from stories around her. She is driven by a mission to create art that tells compelling stories and fosters human connections.”
Interview with Graphic Artist Regina Chua
The following interview is edited for length and clarity:
FCI: So, how does it feel to have your first show as part of The Incubator program?
Regina Chua: Oh my gosh! It’s such an overwhelming feeling, because this is my first year going into art as a profession. But, I’ve always loved doing it ever since I was a kid. And having my first exhibit, to me, feels like such a big accomplishment and milestone in my journey as an artist. And at the same time, to have it at the library is also very close to my heart because the library has always been one of my favorite places as a kid and even now as an adult, because there’s so much you can experience and enjoy through the public library system. Overall, I’m just very, very happy.
FCI: Can you tell me about your background, and how you got to where you are?
RC: Absolutely. I’m originally from the Philippines and I moved to the U.S. the first time around high school and that is actually what started my gallery’s theme of the “Immigrant Experience,” because I came in during the middle of my formative years and then I started residing here permanently about five years ago.
FCI: And how old are you now?
RC: I’m currently 29.
FCI: And when you first came to the U.S., were you an English speaker? Was that part of your assimilation experience?
RC: At the point I came to the U.S., I was already bilingual because my parents were preparing to move me here. So, I started studying more English. And English is practiced somewhat in the Philippines, but depending on your family’s household, you’re more likely to speak Filipino. So, when I moved here, I definitely had a bit of an adjustment in how I pronounce things, my accent, and just, like, adjusting to the terms, the slang – all of that. So, even though I didn’t formally have to go through an English as a second language program, I had a lot of friends that I would worked with and helped until we could get to the point where we could translate Filipino words properly in terms of what we wanted to say and express in English.

FCI: And you went to high school in Arlington?
RC: So, I actually came in to California and that’s where I ended up graduating from high school. And, I only moved here to northern Virginia for work.
FCI: And are you a graphic designer by trade?
RC: No, actually, I’m an economist. [Laughs]. A very, very far jump in terms of occupation.
FCI: That’s great! So, where are you an economist?
RC: So, I was originally in federal government, but I currently work in the private sector.
FCI: So, are you now living in Arlington?
RC: So, I was originally in Arlington and I founded my art studio in Arlington. However, I’ve since moved to Falls Church just this year and that’s where my studio is based now.
FCI: Is your gallery associated with Falls Church Arts?
RC: I am also working with the Falls Church Arts gallery. I usually attend their art critique groups, and am just kind of getting to know the community better. It’s just that the Arlington Library program got back to me sooner [Laughs]. But, I do hope to host something more local in Falls Church since I’m based here now and I really want to connect with the community.
FCI: So is your studio a place people can visit?
RC: Right now it’s a home-based arts studio with a virtual storefront. So, we have shops online for our products and art prints. But eventually I would love to have a physical storefront based in Fairfax County or here in Falls Church.
FCI: And when you say “we,” do you have a partner?
RC: Correct. So, my art studio is a partnership. It’s me and my husband Carlos.
FCI: And is that how you met, through art?
RC: Oh, we met through economics [Laughs]. We have very similar occupations and we did meet in the Philippines. But it was always our dream to set up here in the U.S.
FCI: And in terms of your art, did you go to art school, or are you self-trained?
RC: I’m self-trained. I did not go through a formal art school. I did some things like a boot camp or some art courses, but I don’t have a degree in fine arts, for example. It’s always something I enjoyed, frankly, and something I wished I could do as a career shift. Because as much as I really love my career in economics and data, I just find so much more creative self-expression through art and it’s just something I’d really like to pursue and do more full time.
FCI: And how would you describe your medium?
RC: So, when I had started with art, it was all traditional, like acrylic paints, colored pencils, copic markers – you know, you just get all the art supplies you can, right? [Laughs]. But eventually, around the time I was in my teens, digital art started picking up steam, so I actually transitioned to that, with Photoshop, Procreate, and now, currently I use Clip Studio Paint which actually helps me create graphic novels, illustrations, and animation. So, my main medium right now is digital art and the technique I use right now is called 2-D Rasterized Painting which is where you approach the digital medium as if it were a 2-D canvas and you paint layer after layer and the digital program helps you adjust things like hues, color balances, tones, color levels, that kind of thing.
After asking Chua to spell out the unfamiliar word “Rasterized,” she did so using a very quick and precise NATO alphabet. I asked her if she was ever in the armed forces.
RC: [Laughs]. No, but my dad was in the army. So, growing up it was always military time or, “List out your alphabet using the NATO alphabet!” – “Oh, Alright, Dad!”
FCI: So, you’ve branched into digital art? So is it fair to say you’re influenced by Manga?
RC: Yes, that is fair to say. I do have a very strong love for anime and manga because growing up in the Philippines there was a lot of eastern media exposure, particularly through anime.

FCI: Is there a particular sub-genre you specialize in?
RC: That’s an interesting question. I wouldn’t say that my art style is traditional anime. I would say it’s like a fusion between the painterly style and anime. I guess it’s kind of a representation about how I’ve gotten an exposure, living in the U.S. or North America and in Asia. It’s kind of like blended together at this point.
FCI: And do you write stories for your longer sequences?
RC: Yeah, so we also do sequential art or graphic novels. So, it’s like comic books.
FCI: So do you guys write that together or is one of you more the writer?
RC: Yes. I would say that Carlos is more specialized in doing it. This is his third work that we’re actually debuting this month. We’re debuting it at the Small Press Expo. It’s definitely more up his alley but I do help and support it through editing, typesetting, creating the covers and promotion and illustrations.

FCI: So, the idea of the Library as having the Incubator program – What do you think about that?
RC: Yeah, it’s very exciting. Because, coming from the Philippines, we didn’t have anything like public libraries, because the concept is just not there, I had never seen that before. So coming here, I got to learn more [about] how the library is not just [a place with books], but an institution with everyone’s knowledge and learning for it to be democratized, but it’s also a democratizing opportunity through exposure. So because the library does get a lot of foot traffic, people of all ages visit. I really love that they started this Incubator program to help the creative community find a platform, a physical platform, where they can actually meet with the people in their community and share themes about their experiences and work with the library to promote some of that because it’s not enough that you have the literary-bound knowledge, but you have it through human experience. And that, I think, is such a unique thing about this Incubator program.
FCI: So you’re very positive about the program?
RC: Yes. And I did hear that the program used to run before the pandemic and then got suspended because we had lockdowns. So this is the first time coming back since the pandemic.

FCI: How exciting! Anything else you’d like to share?
RC: I’m very new to this City [of Falls Church] but I’ve been loving it so much here. I love that there’s an art gallery. I love that it’s such a vibrant scene, especially walking down Broad Street. And I’m really excited to help represent Falls Church also through this program. And I hope this program can burgeon and inspire others to explore more the arts, and the libraries, and to support that.
Regina Chua’s “The Immigrant Experience” will be on display at the Columbia Pike Branch of Arlington Library at 816 S. Walter Reed Dr. through Dec. 16, 2024.
In keeping with Chua’s devotion to public libraries, she announced: “All pieces [at the exhibition] will be available for purchase, with a portion of proceeds benefiting Friends of the Library. For more information, please visit https://www.artbycourage.com/ or follow us on social media @artbycourage.”
For a charming video about Art by Courage's "lessons learned" in setting up booths at various graphic arts festivals see this YouTube video.
For artists interested in “showing their work in a temporary exhibition” at an Arlington County Public Library, contact: LIB-ArtCommittee@arlingtonva.us.
By Christopher Jones
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