About | เกี่ยวกับ

Meet the Artist

My nickname is Cartoon, LA-based artist of @kwamsookxo on Instagram. My parents nicknamed me after the popular character "Tweety" for their big eyes. I am a second-generation (person born in another country outside of their parents' "home" country, with at least one first-generation (immigrant) parent) Thai-American born and raised in Los Angeles, California.

I received my BA in Public Health Policy from the University of California, Irvine and my MS in Medical Anthropology and Cross-Cultural Practice at Boston University. I like to describe Medical Anthropology as the cross between culture and medicine; how culture influences people's perceptions on health and how health is perceived in different cultures. I was inspired to pursue this niche field by my parents' experiences with facing health care disparities. Being their translator (very different from an interpreter btw), I witnessed and realized that not only is there a language barrier, but also how culture influences people's perceptions of health and health-seeking behaviors. Examples include perceived stigmas of diseases, religion (karmic retribution, role of amulets) and the use of traditional/alternative medicine. 

I previously worked in the healthcare field around health equity but decided to leave the medical academic environment to pursue diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging full time. I love learning about different cultural practices and am very fascinated with how that shapes human identity. 

Languages: Thai, English
Learning Sign and Cantonese

Thai-related Extracurriculars

I am proud to say that I am an "outcome" of the Thai population's countless efforts in preserving Thai culture in the United States. Over the time period of 10+ years, I learned Thai art, language and classical music (mainly the ขิม/khim) from Wat Thai of Los Angeles. Additional activities I was involved in:

• Awarded Miss Thai Heritage during the Thai Cultural Day celebration in Los Angeles (2014)
• Participated in the Thai American Young Leadership Program hosted by the Royal Thai Consulate of Los Angeles and the Crown Property Bureau of Thailand (2015)
• Co-President of Thai Club at UC Irvine (short-term, 2015)
• Intern at the Thai Community Development Center (2017)
• Recipient of the Angels Wings Thai Scholarship during graduate school (2018)