The draw of an alternative lifestyle

Idrew my first cartoon when commissioned by a Chinese University lecturer to produce some work for a journal about gender and sexuality.

I put all my years of experience of the misconceptions of sexuality, and gender bias, into those four pages. At first, I thought the piece was too radical for most people. But instead, I received a lot of positive feedback, and that encouraged me to continue my work.

As a Chinese woman, and the youngest girl in my family, I was told that there were many limitations on what I could achieve. My parents did not have very high expectations and told me that I did not have to work very hard. They placed all their expectations on my elder brother, who had his own study in the loft, and had several private tutors. He went to a private school, while I attended a public school. I was told by my teacher that I should pursue my studies in the arts, but I did not have the resources to do so.

I did not know to question my parents. I just believed everything I was told. From being little, I worked very hard to be at the top in every field. I wanted to prove to them that I could do it and that I was worth the same kind of investment that they had put into my brother. But every time I received an award, my parents would tell me that it was luck. It took me nearly 20 years to recognise my own abilities.

I think a lot of talents are lost or lay undiscovered because of gender restrictions - the beliefs about what men and women should or should not do. When I went to school, women were supposed to be obedient. That doesn't make sense.

I have a consistent theme to my work. I express a lot of daily life experiences in drawings, giving readers a different perspective. I like to twist the angle in everyday things. We have many choices if we choose to look at things from a different perspective.