Michael Nguyen Finch

Michael Nguyen Finch earned his Bachelor of Arts in Studio Arts, summa cum laude, from Hamline University in 2024.

He is a sculptor and interdisciplinary artist whose work explores themes of heritage, identity, and cultural memory, with a particular focus on his Vietnamese ancestry.

Through an amalgamation of Eastern and Western classical and mythological motifs, Finch investigates how diasporic identities are constructed, preserved, and transformed. Influenced by the theory of disidentification, his practice challenges essentialist narratives by recontextualizing ancient symbols within present material and social frameworks. 

Finch creates work that navigates the tension between personal history and collective memory. 

Finch’s practice incorporates steel, stucco, and upcycled cardboard, materials that reflect shelter, transience, and cultural hybridity. His work has been exhibited in Temple at Gallery 120, Dragon in The West at Soeffker Gallery, and American Tragedy at The Carlander Family Gallery. His public sculptures have been featured in the Springfield Sculpture Walk, Price Sculpture Forest, and Hamline Midway Park.