Sky Lee
Encyclopedia
Sky Lee is a Canadian
artist
and novelist.
Lee has published both feminist fiction and non-fiction and identifies as lesbian
.
in 1967 to attend university, she received a B.A.
in Fine Arts at the University of British Columbia
and a Diploma in Nursing from Douglas College
. She became a member of the Asian Canadian Writers Workshop. Lee lives on Saltspring Island
, British Columbia
.
. The book is a collection of four stories exploring what it is like to grow up as a Chinese
-Canadian in a community with links to both Asian-Canadian and Anglo-Canadian cultures. Reviewer Robert W. Bruinsma argued the book was "modestly illustrated."
Lee's first book, Disappearing Moon Cafe, published in 1990, explores the Wong family over four generations, as they operate the titled cafe. Nominated for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
and the Governor General's Award
, the novel won the City of Vancouver Book Award
despite some critics charging that the writing was over-earnest. For example, critic Gary Draper wrote, "Hardly a noun walks free of a trail of adjectives."
In the same year, Lee contributed to the collective prose, Telling It: Women and Language Across Culture. The book's writing is attributed to the "Telling It Book Collective", of which Lee was a member. The book explores issues of racism
and homophobia
experienced by native
, lesbian
and Asian Canadian
women.
In 1994, Lee published Bellydancer: Stories, a collection of 15 short stories that explore a range of feminist themes, with allegories
focusing primarily on the "bellydancer," an archetype
of survival. The back cover of the book explains: "bellydancing was originally performed at the bedside of women in labor
, as an erotic dance of creation."
Her short stories have also appeared in Vancouver Short Stories as well as periodicals such as West Coast Line, The Asianadian, Kinethis, and Makara
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and novelist.
Lee has published both feminist fiction and non-fiction and identifies as lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
.
Personal life
Moving to VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
in 1967 to attend university, she received a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Fine Arts at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
and a Diploma in Nursing from Douglas College
Douglas College
Established in 1970, Douglas College is one of the largest public colleges in British Columbia, Canada serving 14,000 credit students, 9,000 continuing education students and 1,000 international students each year.-Programs:...
. She became a member of the Asian Canadian Writers Workshop. Lee lives on Saltspring Island
Saltspring Island
Saltspring Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia, Canada and Vancouver Island. It is the largest, the most populous, and the most frequently visited of the Gulf Islands...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
.
Career
Lee was first published as the illustrator of 1983's children's book, Teach Me to Fly, Skyfighter! by Paul YeePaul Yee
Paul Yee is a Chinese-Canadian writer. He is third-generation Canadian and was born in Saskatchewan in 1956 but grew up in Vancouver's Chinatown. Yee holds a Master's degree in Canadian history from the University of British Columbia and worked as archivist at City of Vancouver Archives and at...
. The book is a collection of four stories exploring what it is like to grow up as a Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
-Canadian in a community with links to both Asian-Canadian and Anglo-Canadian cultures. Reviewer Robert W. Bruinsma argued the book was "modestly illustrated."
Lee's first book, Disappearing Moon Cafe, published in 1990, explores the Wong family over four generations, as they operate the titled cafe. Nominated for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
The Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, established in 1985 as one of the BC Book Prizes, is awarded annually to the best work of fiction by a resident of British Columbia, Canada....
and the Governor General's Award
Governor General's Award
The Governor General's Awards are a collection of awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, marking distinction in a number of academic, artistic and social fields. The first was conceived in 1937 by Lord Tweedsmuir, a prolific author of fiction and non-fiction who created the Governor...
, the novel won the City of Vancouver Book Award
City of Vancouver Book Award
The City of Vancouver Book Award is a Canadian literary award, that has been presented annually by the city of Vancouver, British Columbia to one or more works of literature judged as the year's best fiction, non-fiction, poetry or drama work about the city....
despite some critics charging that the writing was over-earnest. For example, critic Gary Draper wrote, "Hardly a noun walks free of a trail of adjectives."
In the same year, Lee contributed to the collective prose, Telling It: Women and Language Across Culture. The book's writing is attributed to the "Telling It Book Collective", of which Lee was a member. The book explores issues of racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
and homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
experienced by native
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
, lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
and Asian Canadian
Asian Canadian
This is a list of Canadians of Asian ancestry. Asian Canadians comprise the largest visible minority in Canada, at 11% of the Canadian population.- Ethnicity :List of Asian Canadian Demographies according to the 2006 Census- Notable Asian Canadians :...
women.
In 1994, Lee published Bellydancer: Stories, a collection of 15 short stories that explore a range of feminist themes, with allegories
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
focusing primarily on the "bellydancer," an archetype
Archetype
An archetype is a universally understood symbol or term or pattern of behavior, a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated...
of survival. The back cover of the book explains: "bellydancing was originally performed at the bedside of women in labor
Childbirth
Childbirth is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the birth of one or more newborn infants from a woman's uterus...
, as an erotic dance of creation."
Her short stories have also appeared in Vancouver Short Stories as well as periodicals such as West Coast Line, The Asianadian, Kinethis, and Makara
Makara (magazine)
Makara was a Canadian feminist arts journal, produced in Vancouver, B.C. from December 1975 to 1978 by the Pacific Women’s Graphic Arts Co-operative, in co-operation with Press Gang Publishers...
.