Meet Vannessa Ju

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vannessa Ju. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Vannessa, thank you so much for joining us and offering your lessons and wisdom for our readers. One of the things we most admire about you is your generosity and so we’d love if you could talk to us about where you think your generosity comes from.

More than anything, my generosity stems from my Buddhist upbringing—in the belief that all sentient beings deserve peace, happiness, and to live free from suffering.

We all have suffered—in various ways and degrees of intensity. But looking at things in a bigger picture, on a grander scale, really helps to illuminate the quality of giving and generosity from within myself. All of a sudden, time, energy, and precious resources are all incredibly worth spending on others and those whom we hold near and dear to us in our hearts. From this outlook, it’s very easy to soften the harsh boundaries of “you” versus “I” that society often imposes on us to uphold. The fact of the matter is, we are beings of a singular unit, and we are connected to one another in more ways than we often realize.

This for me especially rings true with it comes to minority and queer communities—both parties being something that I identify with. Being able to understand these exact hardships and nuances from such a personal perspective truly opens up a magnitude of compassion, empathy, and the desire to do good. To be good. To spread goodness—in the understanding that while we all have experienced suffering to different degrees, there are so many others who have experienced a vastness of that suffering—whether in their own lives, their parents’, or generations beyond. When I get the chance to sit, zoom out, and truly contemplate what that means and how all of those factors trickle down to this very moment today, all of sudden, a flood of generosity opens within me: the ecstatic feeling of not just generosity itself, but the goodness of giving to others who truly need it, and to whom these acts of graciousness are truly overdue.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Hello friends! My name is Vannessa Ju, and I’m a Taiwanese-American spiritual creative based in Brooklyn, New York. I work in a variety of different mediums artistically: whether that be as a tattooist, an illustrator, a tarot reader, or simply a spiritual practitioner. Within the crux of all of these things is the jewel of my passion: my personal studio space, Meadow Sky Studio—where we combine together the magic of art and spirituality in a multitude of ways.

All of the artwork that I create centers around magic, nostalgia, and whimsy. I love playing with color and texture, and I love being able to nourish our child-like spirit through motifs and imagery that feel youthful, fun, and free! Throughout everything that I make, I always have the intentionality of imbuing it with the utmost amount of gratitude, love, and magic possible.

Meadow Sky Studio came to me as a concept over the course of my tattoo career—as someone who often craves comfort and solitude, working in shops with heavy foot traffic, loud music, and with others who didn’t quite share the same values as I do didn’t sit right with me. I wanted to be able to foster and create a space that my clients would feel extremely safe in, and also safe enough to explore the intersectionality of art, body modification, and spiritual awakening.

With my artwork and with my studio, I’ve explored these themes and how they work in tandem with one another deeply over the years. Whether it be simply holding space for tattoo clients and allowing them to feel safe in their bodies, or using tarot as a guidance tool to create custom pieces that they can wear on their skin forever, Meadow Sky Studio continues to serve as place for all people from all walks of life to have a sense of peace, comfort, and returning.

Currently, I’m focused on two different personal projects of mine: the first one being my very own tarot deck! Inspired by the children’s storybooks and tales I loved growing up (a la “Madeline,” “Frog and Toad,” “Chrysanthemum”), Ella and The Star Tarot is currently being released in chapter installments as I lovingly paint, print, and create each piece of art by hand. Through the use of colorful imagery and soft, whimsical imagination, Ella and The Star Tarot serves to be used as a tool for gentle guidance and enlightening wisdom for readers of any level, whether beginner or advanced.

The second project I am also actively working on and hosting is ENtuitive Initiation, which is a one-month tarot and tattoo program that focuses on small group accountability and discovery. Through weekly tarot circles, friends who are inspired to take this journey discover what exactly might be going on in their internal body and spirit, and allow the usage of card divination, meditation, and journalling to guide them through their own personal initiation. Whether it be shedding away pieces of themselves that no longer fit, or rejuvenating their sense of self and determination—whatever energies that come up, at the end of the month, we alchemize all of it together into a custom-made tattoo to serve as a protective portal, talisman, amulet—you name it! The possibilities are truly endless.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

In terms of qualities, I personally feel that tenacity, trust, and sense of self have been the most beneficial to me over the course of my journey. Life is hard, and it is tumultuous—always when you least expect it, and certainly not in a way that is always glamorous nor fun. In a way, accepting the fact that there has been and always will be hurdles to jump through, challenges to face, and new mountains to overcome, in of itself helps to build the strength of our tenacity muscle. We have to remember that we can do it, we are capable, that we have been through worse, and that every time push comes to shove, knowing that one has that capability—that tenacity—to continue to persevere is undeniably priceless.

With tenacity comes trust—trust in the vision, trust in whatever it is that your heart is calling to you. Without trust and only sheer brute force, one’s motivation certainly dies out quickly. Whatever you want to call it—trust, faith, divine timing—all of it is to remind ourselves that when we have strong and wholesome intentionality to create more goodness on this planet, we have to trust that we’ve been gifted with such a mission for a reason. Believing in myself, believing in the process, and trusting in my tenacity have all really been things that I’ve had to lean on time and time again during the most arduous parts of my life.

The third quality I would say is sense of self—not in an egotistical, self-absorbent way, but rather in the deep knowing of who you are, and what you are here to do: what you are creating with your life on a day to day basis with the limited time that we have on this Earth. Reminding oneself of all those who have come before us—whether that be our parents, ancestors, or lineage, and how all of those things in combination with our own lives inform who we are today, is something incredibly precious that we often completely tend to forget about. It might be morbid to say, but I think that sense of self is inherently linked to the remembrance of death, and knowing that while we will die one day, those who have died before us in our bloodline also are present in our lives, and are walking along with us in our current journeys from now into the beyond. Who you are as a person, how that informs your values, how those inform what you choose to do—when you have deep sense of self, you can build trust in that self, and when you have that trust, you create a strong tenacity to continuously flex when times are tough, and life is not so pretty.

For those looking to expand or build upon these qualities, I often recommend just sitting with yourself. Journal. Write. Record a voice memo, sit in meditation. Allow yourself to come through and really, truly, introduce itself to you—who is there, underneath all the layers of conditioning and societal expectation that have been pressed upon us since birth? Therein, you will begin to really discover (or perhaps re-discover), who it is you exactly are, and what exactly you want to do, and how you’ll go about it. Truthfully, it is not always so linear and clean cut—it often takes a degree of time to build this information and allow it to reveal itself to you through challenges, tribulations, and deep internal work. But over time, I can surely promise you—the results will be seriously, incredibly worth it.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?

Truthfully, anyone who has an openness in their heart when it comes to the intersection of art, body modification, and all the wondrousness that comes with exploring how they interweave together with spirituality! People that understand that things are almost always more than surface level and that there is more to this world than just the mundane—there is an inner knowing, a nudge, a niggle, that calls us to truly unlock and discover, to return to, our true identity and essence. For those who want to continue to explore and discover their magic, whether through my art goods, tattoos, or through my tarot programs—know that there is such an expansive and beautiful adventure that awaits you!

The ups and downs of life are ceaseless and never-ending, but when we look inwards to meet our true nature, the bounds of what we can create from that source are endless. For those who need some extra guidance, reassurance, or empowerment (or perhaps all three!) throughout this craziness that we call life—come on down to Meadow Sky Studio. We welcome you with open arms and would absolutely love to have you!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.meadowskystudio.com
• Instagram: enlight.ink / meadowsky.studio