ALL SEEING SENECA exists in a wonderfully twisted dream world creating characters and worlds best described as “cosmic horror and candyland.” 

Growing up in Shanghai, she was a quiet kid living in her daydreams and immersed in the culture of animation and fiction books. Because of the limitation of media exposure in China, she often had to seek out bootlegs of her beloved classics - inspiring her to create her own original characters and stories. Seneca later studied at RISD and dedicated herself to a career in picture making. Her practice landed a commercial clientele while her own paintings and illustrations gathered prestigious awards and exhibited in international shows such as The Armory and her first solo auction art series with Phillips. Seneca’s most ambitious personal digital painting generative series release thus far, the 2,880-piece Perils of Sese, sold out in under ten minutes. Since then, she has gone on to express her storytelling in the form of traditional paintings, last shown with the Albertz Benda gallery in NYC. 

Rolling Stone magazine stated her “creativity helped fuel a technological revolution,” lauding her contributions as lead designer of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), which rocked the NFT world as soon as they launched in April 2021. Her images have since sold at Sotheby’s and Christies, with secondary sales amassing over 4 billion. The ape character Seneca created became the heart of a massive cultural community that will remain in our collective imaginations for eternity. They have inspired derivative works that have been showcased countless times, ranging from an episode of The Simpsons to massive mascot ape characters dancing live on stage with Snoop Dog and Eminem.

Seneca’s work represents a new world of art and accessibility. It emerges with muted, yet illuminating palettes and expressions of surrealism, inspired by her love for the macabre, animation, and cinematic storytelling. In its purest form it is a visually tangible expression of her inner emotions and Seneca’s waying of coping with life and experiences.

Photo by Michael Kusumadjaja