May Sun

May Sun (1954- ), born in Shanghai, China, immigrated to the United States in 1971 to attend the University of San Diego. Sun is a Los Angeles based artist known primarily for her public art projects. She also works in the mediums of sculpture, mixed media, photography, and installation. Her work has been exhibited nationally. Her installation UnderGround is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Her multi-media installation "L.A./River/China/Town" premiered at the Santa Monica Museum of Art's Art in the Raw series in 1988, and the MOCA produced radio version of the installation won a Silver Award from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. She has won numerous awards and fellowships, including two National Endowment for the Arts Visual Artist's Fellowships and a Getty Fellowship for the Visual Arts.

Sun received her B.A. in Art (Painting/Sculpture/Graphic Arts) from UCLA and attended the MFA program at Otis Art Institute (now Otis College of Art and Design), Los Angeles. She was on the faculty at California Institute for the Arts, and is a visiting artist and lecturer at art schools and colleges nationally. She is currently on faculty at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles.

Public art
Sun's public art commissions include the Hollywood and Western Red Line Subway Station in Hollywood, CA; Union Station Gateway Center, Los Angeles; City Hall in Culver City; Warner Center, Woodland Hills; San Antonio International Airport, San Antonio, Texas; the Rose Kennedy Greenway in Boston, Massachusetts and the Robert F. Kennedy Inspiration Park at the site of the former Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Her installations and public art projects are heavily researched and she draws inspiration from the history and surroundings of the site.

Public Commissions
2005 Robert F. Kennedy Inspiration Park, in collaboration with Richard Wyatt. Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, Ambassador Hotel site. Gonzalez/Goodale Architects (Pasadena, CA) and Ahbe Landscape Architects (Culver City, CA). Commissioned by the Los Angeles Unified School District. Installed 2010. Received Honor Award from Westside Urban Forum's 2012 Design Awards.

2004 Flow (bronze floor inlays), Crown City Center Office Building, Langdon Wilson Architects (Los Angeles, CA). Commissioned by Investment Development Services, Pasadena, California. Installed 2005.

2003 Echoes of St. Francis, outdoor sculpture for the Northeast Valley Animal Shelter, Department of Animal Services. Commissioned by the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles, California. Installed 2007.

2000 Walking the River, San Antonio International Airport Terminal Renovation Project: member of design team with Marmon Mok Associates and Davis, Durand-Hollis, Rupe (San Antonio, TX). Designed terrazzo floor. Commissioned by the City of San Antonio, Texas. Installed 2004. Received AIA Certificate of Recognition Award.

1999 Sky Coyote, outdoor sculpture and integrated artwork for lobby, Warner Center office building, Poliquin Kellogg Design Group (Woodland Hills, CA). Commissioned by Lennar Partners (Irvine, CA), Woodland Hills, California. Installed 2005.

1997 Chinese Chess Plaza, Central Area Corridor, Central Artery/Tunnel Project, new plaza design for gateway to Chinatown. Commissioned by Massachusetts Highway Department and Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Boston, Massachusetts. Installed 2007.

1993 City of Dreams/River of History, east portal, Union Station Gateway Center. Lead Artist, with Richard Wyatt and Ehrenkrantz & Eckstut Architects (Los Angeles, CA). Commissioned by Catellus Development (Los Angeles, CA) and the Metropolitan Transit Authority, Los Angeles, California. Installed 1996.

1993 La Ballona (outdoor sculpture in reflecting pool), City Hall, Culver City, California. CHCG Architects (Pasadena, CA) Commissioned by the City of Culver City, CA. Installed 1995.

1991 Listening for the Trains to Come (outdoor fence sculpture), commissioned by the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, Los Angeles, California. Installed 1993.

1990-91 Hollywood Blvd. and Western Ave. Red Line Subway Station. Collaborative station design with Escudero Fribourg Architects (Los Angeles, CA), and specific art elements throughout station. Commissioned by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority, Los Angeles, California. Installed 1999.

Selected Grants, Awards, and Residencies
2012 Honor Award, public/open space category for Robert F. Kennedy Inspiration Park, 2012 Design Awards, Westside Urban Forum, Los Angeles, California.

2010 Certificate of Commendation, City of Los Angeles for Robert F. Kennedy Inspiration Park.

2004 American Institute of Architects Certificate of Recognition Award for San Antonio International Airport.

2001 Artist Research for Completion (ARC) Grant, Durfee Foundation, Los Angeles, California.

1996 Lila Wallace/Reader’s Digest Artists Residency at Giverny Program, Giverny, France.

1996 International Artists in Residence Program, Art Pace, San Antonio, Texas.

1995 Visual Artists Fellowship, the J Paul Getty Trust Fund for the Visual Arts, Los Angeles, California.

1994 Artist Grant, Art Matters, Inc., New York City, New York.

1993 Visual Artists Fellowship, New Genres, National Foundation for the Arts, Washington, DC.

1992 Artists Fellowship, California Arts Council, Sacramento, California.

1990 Resident Fellowship, National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, Miami, Florida.

1990 SILVER Award, Corporation for Public Broadcasting (radio version of L.A./River/China/Town)

1989 Visual Artists Fellowship, New Genres, National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC.

1988 LACE Interdisciplinary Grant, Rockefeller Found ation, New York City and the National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, DC.

1987 Brody Arts Fund Fellowship, California Community Foundation, Los Angeles, California.