Artist Feature — Reana
What led you to BTS?
In 2017, my friend who was into K-pop kept mentioning a song called “Blood, Sweat and Tears.” Apparently it had gone viral and was displayed on many TV music channels so I went home and listened to it. It was my first time listening to BTS and without realizing I had already been hooked! So then obviously I went into research-mode and then long story short I became a huge fan. Over the years, I realized that BTS has been a huge inspiration for me. Most of the art I create is inspired by them, their lyrics, and the things they say, even their fashion sense.
Who or what sparked your interest in art?
I used to think that I didn’t have any special hobbies or talents when I was younger and now there are too many of them T_T. I tried out a lot of different things and then creating art just stuck with me. First it was just random drawings or paintings then I slowly started to make portraits of the BTS members (mostly Namjoon) and it helped to improve my art a lot. Now, my main focus is art collages and graphics – it is like therapy for me. It helps me collect my thoughts and express myself in different ways.
What has the biggest challenge been on this project so far?
My biggest challenge in creating the Suit of Swords is figuring out how to show the emotions of the cards through my art style because I have not yet personally experienced all the emotions that the cards represent. It has been a lesson and practice in empathy. Kirstin Wu has been a huge help in figuring out what to do. Her explanations are really clear and straight to the point. I try to associate the cards with the songs I listen to and the movies I watch. So far it’s been really fun to create the cards.
