Kemlyn Tan Bappe

Mount Pleasant, Iowa

Kemlyn Tan Bappe is a visual artist from Singapore and is the artistic director for Galleria Imago Dei in Fairfield, Iowa. Tan Bappe’s paintings draw from her Peranakan heritage, an intermarriage of Chinese and Malay cultures influenced by the sea. Her “batik” style of paintings of dragons, phoenixes, and marine life are colorful and rich with symbolism and spirituality. Tan Bappe’s work can be found in collections nationally and internationally. Tan Bappe teaches workshops with World of Difference, a cultural organization that nurtures inter-cultural relations in youth. She uses her artistic talents to bridge American students in the classroom with cultures from around the world. Tan Bappe is also on the teaching roster for VSA arts of Iowa. She has dyslexia and says she believes it is important to highlight the contributions people with disabilities bring to the community. “My challenges have helped me acknowledge my need for interdependence by asking for help from those whose gifts complement my own.”