I know little of woodworking, but everything I know I learned from my uncle Dino. For over 40 years, Dino has had a custom furniture shop in West Berkeley called Berkeley Woodworks. It’s been a privilege to soak up some of the sawdust and craftspersonship.

Of all of the enrichment and joy I have taken from art history lectures, Zhang Hongtu’s work has perhaps been one the most persisting influences. He embodies the spirit of cross-pollination. I’ll never get over how clever his website’s domain name is. In addition to the Material Mao series, the Ongoing Shan Shui Series will forever be a reminder of how wrong I can be about what I will find interesting.