Have a Pomelo

Karen Kar Yen Law, detail of Pomelo Rinds 七(Seven), 2023, monotype on paper, 1/1, 19” x 15”.

Karen Kar Yen Law, Pomelo Rinds 七(Seven), 2023, monotype on paper, 1/1, 19” x 15”.

Karen Kar Yen Law, Pomelo Rinds 七(Seven), 2023, monotype on paper, 1/1, 19” x 15”.

Karen Kar Yen Law, detail of Pomelo Rinds 七(Seven), 2023, monotype on paper, 1/1, 19” x 15”.

Karen Kar Yen Law, detail of Pomelo Rinds 七(Seven), 2023, monotype on paper, 1/1, 19” x 15”.

Project Space: Karen Kar Yen Law, 'Have a Pomelo', 2024.

Project Space: Karen Kar Yen Law, 'Have a Pomelo', 2024.

Project Space: Karen Kar Yen Law, 'Have a Pomelo', 2024.

Project Space: Karen Kar Yen Law, 'Have a Pomelo', 2024.


Project Space
Have a Pomelo
Karen Kar Yen Law
January 12, 2024 – February 24, 2024

OPENING RECEPTION: Friday, January 12, 5-7 pm at Open Studio.

Have a Pomelo engages the materiality of the giant citrus fruit, the pomelo. The pomelo is a significant fruit in the Chinese home, finding itself regularly on the spirit table, shared among family members as dessert, or gifted during Lunar Calendar festivals. Unlike its citrus cousins, the pomelo’s tart and sweet pulp require more laborious preparation for consumption. Once the fruit is eaten, the pith and rind can be repurposed for other recipes. In the Law home, the pomelo is positioned at the center of cultural practice between members of the family who teach and those who are learning cultural traditions.

Combined with a monotype process that utilizes newsprint stencils, Law makes use of leftover pomelo rinds as a relief printmaking matrix. Then, the leftover newsprint stencils are re-utilized as another matrix in subsequent prints. In this way, Law’s material experimentation embraces the philosophies of balance and no-waste in Chinese cooking, while simultaneously producing an alternative experience of interacting with this highly symbolic fruit.



Karen Kar Yen Law (b. 1997) is a second-generation Cantonese-Chinese settler who lives on the traditional land of the Anishinaabe in Unionville, ON. Upon graduation from Queen’s University with a BFA (Honours) and BEd, Law was the 2021-2022 Emerging Printmaker Scholarship Residency holder at Open Studio. Most recently Law was the winner of the 2023 Untapped People’s Choice Award at Toronto’s independent artists fair, Artist Project.

Canada Council for the Arts

Karen Kar Yen Law gratefully acknowledges funding support from the Canada Council for the Arts.