When a gunman opened fire on the Star Dance studio last weekend, the tragedy hit close to home for artist Jonathan Chang.
“I’m usually drawing them as I'm reading the stories, so I keep the image and the emotions at the same time,” Chang said.
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WATCH HEREThese are the victims of the Monterey Park mass shooting through the eyes of artist Jonathan Chang.
"I feel like through art, we can really humanize these individuals and center it around the victims. I feel like people can resonate with that - read these stories and say, hey this person sounds exactly like my mom, sounds like my dad,” Chang said.
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SIGN UP The simplistic, cartoon-like artwork is signature for the artist.
His digital drawings went viral at the height of the stop AAPI hate movement, when his work was displayed at New York's Times Square last year.
But the Lunar New Year's eve shooting at the Star Dance studio hit differently for the 36-year-old illustrator, whose childhood memories center around the San Gabriel Valley.
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“I think for Monterey Park -- I had to do it. It's where I grew up around - and these people -- I could have easily bumped into them going to 99 Ranch or any of the Asian markets in the area,” Chang said.
With each portrait on his instagram feed, Chang writes about each victim in the caption: Who they were, their background, and for many of the victims, how they loved to dance.
“I got a DM from the owner's daughter of Star Dance. She basically said, thank you for showing people that this is a place where a lot of senior citizens went to start a new hobby. It's never too late to start a new hobby. They were there to dance the night away and celebrate new beginnings,” Chang said.
The artist says he sees his artwork almost as a responsibility, so that each person's story, and their faces are never forgotten.
“It was very important for me to humanize these victims just outside of news headlines because after a while people are going to forget the headlines -- but I want people to remember the people and families affected,” Chang said.
