Minneapolis artist Seexeng Lee, right, works with Austin Lee of Green Bay as 216 tiles are painted Saturday at St. Norbert College in De Pere. The tiles will be parts of a mural for a campus building. Photos by Jim Matthews/Press-GazetteTou Xiong of Appleton paints a tile Saturday for the mural.A sampling of the 216 tiles that were painted Saturday.

March 8, 2009 Hmong students learn about, then create art at St. Norbert About 50 attend gathering, help design mural By Sara Boyd sboyd2@greenbaypressgazette.com DE PERE — Watching artist Seexeng Lee of Minneapolis describe the evolution of Hmong art instilled a sense of pride in Seenia Thao of Denmark. "It makes me appreciate art and being Hmong even more," the high school junior said. "It opened my eyes to a lot of things." Thao was just one of roughly 50 Hmong students from Brown County, the Fox River Valley and Wausau invited to attend a special art day Saturday at St. Norbert College. The event introduced students to Hmong artist Lee, who specializes in mosaic murals, through a special presentation. Each student received the chance to paint a tile with the artist, incorporating their own artistic styles. On her tile, Thao wrote the word "me" and drew a picture of a Hmong girl in traditional clothes. "There's a lot of words that could define my culture and me, so instead I just put 'me,' " she said. "I also drew a hand, because the hand for me is the most significant symbol. It can mean reaching out, having hope in your hands, having everything in your hands and also letting go of things." Lee drew black lines on each tile and instructed students to stay within those lines. After the tiles were completed, they were put together to create one 22-by-5-foot mural. The mural will be hung in the gathering place of Madelaine and Lorraine residence halls. "I think that's awesome," said Naly Yang of Green Bay. "You just get to see how everyone expresses art." The mission of the event was to introduce students to opportunities in higher education and to give them a chance to learn leadership skills for the future, said Eric Wagner, assistant director of admissions for St. Norbert. The event's theme was "Core Values, Prayer, Community and Service to Others." "It's for them to see the leaders in themselves," he said, "to take action and to see they have to take their future into their own hands." The day included a leadership program for the students led by Leadership Service and Engagement at St. Norbert as well as members of the local Hmong community. Wagner said they'd like to see more Hmong students explore higher education and hopes this event helps to reach that goal. "One of the major things that I hope they get out of this is the work they completed in one day and to see the things they can achieve," he said. "Not only for higher education, but what else they can do to see their dreams and reach for them, too."   THANK YOU Sara Boyd for your wonderful coverage Jim Matthews/Press-Gazette Tou Xiong of Appleton for the photo. To read the article online please click on the link below: http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/article/20090308/GPG0101/903080717/1978

Hmong artist helps students connect By Charles Menchaca • Wausau Daily Herald • March 7, 2009 About 40 local Hmong high school students and some parents today will learn more about their culture through a day of activities planned at St. Norbert College in DePere.  The students are scheduled to work on a project with Minneapolis-based artist Seexeng Lee and participate in a leadership program. St. Norbert director of admissions Eric Wagner planned the event as a way for members of Wausau's Hmong community to connect with those in Green Bay. "It's not so much to see the college as it is to blend Hmong history and culture through leadership activities," said Pete Newton, a guidance counselor at D.C. Everest Senior High School. Students who signed up for the trip attend D.C. Everest and Wausau West high schools. Everest senior See Lee said she is most excited for the art portion of the program. Seexeng Lee will spend part of today teaching students about the evolution of Hmong art and work with the students in small groups. See Lee said she began to dabble in graphic art because her older brother has the computer program Photoshop on his computer. See, 17, said she uses Photoshop to layer images of famous Asian actors with colorful drawings to decorate her school folders. See said she hopes to learn more about her background from the event. She was born in Thailand but moved to the United States with her family when she was a year old and so has no memory of the art and culture of her native land. See's friend Doua Vang, 18, is in the same situation. Like many young Hmong-Americans, she is losing touch with her culture's history. "I don't really know that much about the Hmong customs, so I want to learn more," Doua said. In addition to culture, Doua is interested in the leadership portion of the event. Doua wants to improve her skills to be a better participant in the D.C. Everest School Forest Leadership Program. The program allows students to act as student counselors to fifth-graders who stay overnight in the forest to learn about nature and teamwork.   Thank you Charles Menchaca for the beautiful article.  To read the actual online article on WAUSAU DAILY HERALD please click on the link below: http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009903070573

Future Hmong Leaders from the SEACC- the C project (Project Lead: Nou Chang) Bao Loag, Nou Loag, Toua Loag, See Loag, Sa Moua, Tang Moua, Mai Moua, Among Vang, Vong Vang, Pa Zong Vang. Thank you for having allowed me to spent an afternoon with you! Continue to keep HOPE alive!

HMOOB TEEN MAGAZINE

HMOOB TEEN MAGAZINE The place where Hmoob teens can speak and can be heard Nhia and Seexeng I have the good fortune of being featured in this very hip magazine- Hmoob Teen Magazine, Summer Issue.  Released July 4th, 2008. Article:  TEACHER FEATURE Sub article: SEEXENG LEE:  The Artist of the Gold Leaf by Nhia Lee and Panhia Lee, Hmoob Teen Editors, Mpls and North St. Paul, MN PICK YOUR VERY OWN COPY @ HAP and at your local Library Or by CLICKING here

MPS Teacher Featured in Book on Hmong Culture in Minnesota Congratulations to Seexeng Lee, Visual Art teacher at Patrick Henry High School, for having his artwork, Leej Niam Txoj Kev Hlub (Mother’s Love), included in the recently published book, "The People Of Minnesota: HMONG IN MINNESOTA" (Minnesota Historical Society Press). Author Chia Youyee Vang, assistant professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, sites Seexeng Lee as an emerging artist and educator within Minnesota. We are thankful to have such an inspiring teacher in our district! - Minneapolis Public School Hotline News letter February 4 - 10, 2008

I am honored to have my painting "Mother's Love" published in this first of its kind book written by Dr. Chia Youyee Vang!  JUST RELEASED JANUARY 21, 2008!

TO ORDER YOUR COPY FROM MHS PRESS!

The Lee Family 2007

[ KV: So how do you go from being the shyest kid on earth to teaching hundreds of high schoolers? SL: I have had the most difficult time transforming and adjusting to this role. I have to admit that the journey was quite bumpy and at times the thought of giving up seemed simpler. It took a lot of self-sacrificing. The two driving forces that kept me going were, first, the influence and assistance of others of a similar background and upbringing. I felt that there was a need to have a Hmong teacher in the school system who can guide and lead students of similar needs. Since I had never had a Hmong teacher while attending school, I made up my mind to be one. The second driving force was the realization of the one love I have – the love for the arts. ] READ THE FULL ARTICLE by EYE.D MAGAZINE

Saint Paul PIONEER PRESS TwinCities.com

St. Paul Pioneer Press Posted on Sat, Nov. 26, 2005 Hmong kick off New Year celebration It's a time of revelry and tradition. It's also a time to meet new people "perhaps a future spouse or client” and share your talents. BY EMILY GURNON Pioneer Press Hmong from Minnesota, Wisconsin and beyond trudged through the snow Friday to the St. Paul River Centre for the 30th annual Minnesota Hmong New Year celebration, which features music, dancing, a beauty pageant, sales of traditional clothes and food, and general hanging out. The holiday is so important that women spend a year sewing elaborate, coin-bedecked costumes; artists assemble their work or cut CDs for release this weekend; and families come from across the country and the world to gather with their loved ones and friends. Here are some of those sharing in the revelry Friday, the first of three days of celebration: THE PAINTER Seexeng Lee, a thin, animated man with shoulder-length hair and a quick smile, stands behind a booth stacked with "New Year Celebration Hmong MN" T-shirts and Hmong tapestries, imported from Thailand by his mother-in-law. Behind him is an array of framed paintings featuring real gold, copper and silver leaf. Four teenage girls, three dressed identically in purple satin dresses with matching orchids in their hair, and one in green, pop up in front of the booth, waving at him. He waves back. "My students," he tells a visitor. The 30-year-old artist and art teacher at Patrick Henry High School in Minneapolis exudes enthusiasm about his paintings, which his students pushed him to exhibit. He still remembers his first piece of art, an elephant he scratched into the dirt floor of his family's home in the refugee camp of Ban Vinai, Thailand. He arrived in the United States when he was 9 and found that his drawings were the only way he could communicate with his English-speaking teachers and classmates.