Lawrence Ricardo - Co-Founder and Art Director of More Than Asian
Lawrence Ricardo is the San Francisco based Co-Founder and Art Director of More Than Asian. An experienced marketing creative, Lawrence values art and design and is quite passionate about building community. In 2019, he partnered with Alex Hallmark in founding More Than Asian as space to share Asian American identities and experiences, a platform for visual storytelling, and highlight our complex perspectives and experiences. “Through an editorial, creative lens and perspective, our goal with this storytelling project is to give a voice to members of our community who haven’t had the opportunity before. By interviewing and photographing individuals who aspire to inspire, we create a platform to discuss issues and topics relevant to the Asian American experience.” describes Lawrence. More Than Asian delves into conversations of identity and culture and Lawrence recognizes the importance in his Asian and Filipino American identity, driven to build community and empower others to find their voice.
morethanasian.com
@morethanasian
@lawrence_abella
More Than Asian founders: Lawrence Ricardo and Alex Hallmark
How did you create your career path? Were you always interested in art and design?
I’ve always been involved with the arts, beginning with my many years being involved in musical theater and show choir from grade school through college. These influenced the start of my professional career, first as a marketing assistant at the Green Music Center in Sonoma County and a musical director at a local children’s theater.
Now, as an experienced marketing creative, my professional work has shifted into production. I currently work for a boutique marketing and comms agency in San Francisco where I tap into a more behind-the-scenes and creative role, producing various videos, photo shoots, events for my clients.
I’ve learned to love and appreciate all forms of art and design, having experience working directly in the performing arts, visual arts and architectural design. Throughout all my roles, there’s one thing that remains consistent: I’m a passionate community builder with a drive for fostering connections and shareable experiences. That’s the impact I’m hoping to make in the community, and it’s how I’m lending my professional expertise in co-founding More Than Asian, an online storytelling platform.
Can you share the inspiration behind More Than Asian and how it came into fruition?
We conceptualized More Than Asian in 2019 because my co-founder Alex and I saw a gap in the way Asian American stories were packaged and shared with the rest of the world. In a society where Crazy Rich Asians, a wonderful film that we love, was deemed a pivotal moment that introduced Asian storytelling to the rest of the world, we couldn’t help but feel like there’s still much more to be done and many more stories to tell. We have to keep the momentum going. To be Asian is so many things and it can look so many different ways. Our community shouldn’t be painted with one broad stroke. Since society moves slowly to address gaps in representation, we decided to create a project to tell the stories we’ve been missing. We want to foster deeper connections with the people around us. We’re committed to changing our narrative - one story at a time. Our visual storytelling platform aims to highlight the different perspectives, cultures and individual experiences that go beyond a label of our identities.
Through an editorial, creative lens and perspective, our goal with this storytelling project is to give a voice to members of our community who haven’t had the opportunity before. By interviewing and photographing individuals who aspire to inspire, we create a platform to discuss issues and topics relevant to the Asian American experience. Who we are today is shaped by our experiences, cultures and backgrounds. We balance a curated set of environmental portraits with an editorial narrative, which is then published on our online photoblog.
What brought you and Alex Hallmark together as co founders?
Alex and I graduated from Sonoma State University in 2015, a college that is predominantly white and Latino. Only 5 percent of the campus identifies as Asian. We were very aware of the demographics when we signed the college acceptance letter, but it was at a time in our lives where we thought that being the token Asian in our friend groups was cool. We had the “we see people, not color” attitude because it’s honestly what we were used to as we both grew up in predominantly white communities.
The problem was that we went through our whole lives up until that point not understanding the full weight of our identities. We didn’t know the history of our cultures nor the nuances that went into how and why we’re similar and different from one another, outside of what was taught to us by our families. It wasn’t until we both moved to SF (and became roommates!) where we finally had more conversations about being Asian American and understood the impact we could make as advocates for the community.
The phrase “You don’t know what you don’t know” best exemplifies why we co-founded More Than Asian. We’ve learned so much about the diverse Asian cultures just by listening to the stories of those we interview, and we’ve been able to use our platform to provide a deeper understanding of the histories (and sometimes, baggage) that come with the experiences each person has had.
What is the message, the mission behind More Than Asian?
More Than Asian is a conversation starter focused on Asian American identities and experiences, drawing connections within communities and individual spaces. We visually stimulate and empower our audience through positive, open and diverse storytelling.
We take a deeper dive into the journey of members of our community such as where they grew up, what culture(s) they were born into, when they experienced a momentous change in their lives, and how they embrace their Asian American identities today. We focus on celebrating both our similarities and differences within the broader Asian American community, and by using our platform to share milestones and stepping stones with the world, we are weaving together an individual as well as a collective journey of what it means to be More Than Asian.
How important is uplifting Asian Americans and sharing their stories of different paths to success?
It’s extremely important to uplift the stories and successes of our Asian American brothers and sisters. Oftentimes, we are told to look up to our white counterparts as role models. While I don’t discredit the value of finding inspiration in any person, regardless of race, sometimes the ability to relate is forgotten. When you find role models who do have similar shared experiences as you, whether it’s navigating the first-generation experience or overcoming the internalized model minority myth that’s perpetuated into our minds, for example, it impacts the path to success.
What inspires and motivates you?
It’s inspiring and motivating when I hear that our project’s goals of advancing the Asian American narrative don’t go unnoticed. Since none of us on the creative team are getting paid to spend time producing content, we thrive on the feedback we get from our readers.
When you have a passion project, you worry that your content falls on deaf ears. So whenever we receive emails, comments and testimonials from people who can relate to the stories we are producing, that’s all that matters in the end.
We’re creating content on this platform to be timeless. Whether you stumble upon these stories today, tomorrow or a year from now, the content will still be relevant. Why? Because stories and experiences don’t have an expiration date.
Who/what has been instrumental in your personal and creative growth?
Working in the marketing and communications industry can really become mundane if you are not working on projects or with clients that excite you. And sometimes, this profession is no different than working in sales. You have to actively get out of that mindset and find the content that really inspires you.
I really give a lot of credit to the individuals who brought together the Asian American community on Facebook, whether it’s Subtle Asian Traits, Asian Creative Network, Asian Hustle Network, etc. A lot of the creatives I work with, both for More Than Asian and for my agency day job, were sourced directly from these Facebook groups. Without these resources, I wouldn’t even know where to look for innovative creatives. Not only that, but these Facebook groups are where a lot of the people we interview for our stories come from as well. The Asian diaspora is so large, so it’s humbling to find a place where we can all come together and learn from and empower one another.
How does your identity reflect in the work you create?
My Asian and Filipino American identity has been increasingly important to me as I’ve gotten older. I’m here to learn and understand who we, as humans, are in relation to one another. A lot of that comes from our culture. A lot of that comes from the biases that have been instilled in us, whether good or bad. The work that I produce will always be driven by building community and empowering those around me to stand up and own their voice.
Are there any other projects you are working on that you are excited about?
Season one of More Than Asian has already launched, which includes six, diverse written stories and four Instagram TV interviews. We're in the process of producing content for season two, and are hoping to gather support in the community who share the same passions as us of advancing Asian American storytelling. We encourage supporters to contribute to the success of our project by visiting morethanasian.com/support.
In addition to More Than Asian, I’ve had the opportunity to volunteer with local organizations in San Francisco who also work to empower and uplift the AAPI community, whether it’s through philanthropic initiatives, economic advancements or celebrating our local talent. A huge shout out to Project by Project and Kollaboration SF for consistently working to uplift the members and organizations in our community.
Photos by :
@angelinahongmedia