Tshab Her

Tshab Her is an interdisciplinary artist currently living and working in Columbia Heights, Minnesota. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio arts at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2016. She is also a wardrobe stylist for Femme Retale, an online second-hand clothing store, and creates earrings under the brand It’s Pronounced Cha, established in 2021.

Drawing from her second-generation Hmong American experiences, Her confronts, contemplates, and grieves the wounds of her family system as well as the overall trauma and displacement of the Hmong people. She uses textiles and embroidery to share her story with conviction and care and to make sense of her religious trauma, sexuality, mental health, body insecurities, and Hmong identity. Her also incorporates other mediums into her art practice such as poetry, fashion, social media, photography, sculpture, and installation. She engages with the tension of belonging by rejecting the white gaze and grounding herself in the spirit, resilience, and strength of her ancestors—uncovering the ancient wisdom that’s been passed down from generations through paaj ntaub and oral storytelling.