Meet the Artist
Kayla
Dang
aka. Umidra, Digital/Traditional Painting and Animation
“My work revolves around my lived experience, an attempt to understand my thoughts and feelings but also to process. My film, “I should be dead already” is a 2D animated short that is an introspective summary of my mental health over the past four years. I wanted to create a piece that could accurately represent me and my feelings, but also a work that could resonate with others. ”
Kayla Dang (she/they) is a queer Vietnamese-American artist and animator from Dallas, Texas. They have a BFA in Drawing and Painting: Digital Painting & Expanded Animation from OCAD University (c. 2022) and is currently based out of Toronto. Their work revolves around their experiences with mental health and self expression through their art.Their recent film, “I should be dead already”, is centered around their experiences with mental health as they transitioned from a teenager to a young adult. Though their recent work focuses on 2D animation and digital art, they also enjoy using traditional mediums such as watercolor and gouache. They explore themes of mental health, otherness, and emotions based off their lived experiences to better express and understand themselves. Other themes they’re interested in include fantasy, nature, and the body.
OCAD U - Faculty of Art
Drawing and Painting: Digital Painting and Expanded Animation
Major Completed, 2022
Digital Art 2D Animation Character Design Adobe Animate ToonBoom Harmony 21 Storyboarding Concept Art Clip Studio Paint Photoshop CC Maya After Effects CC Gamification
Celebrate the work of OCAD U’s class of 2021/2022!