Your interpretation or mine? Hong Kong artist Chow Chun Fai reflects in video interview

HONG KONG FOTANIAN ARTIST VIDEO INTERVIEW

In the four-minute video, Chow Chun Fai [art]attack 6, Hong Kong-born artist Chow Chun Fai shares his views on the ever-evolving interpretation of art and his own role as an artist.

A graduate of the Chinese University of Hong Kong‘s Department of Fine Arts, Chow is currently an active member of the Fotan art community, working primarily in Hong Kong and Beijing.

His works have been exhibited in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Manchester, Munich, Salzburg, Vienna, Palermo, and Verona.

In his “Painting on Movie” series, Chow appropriates stills from popular cinema. Through the remaking process, the artist explores the differences between his own understanding and the audience’s interpretation.

…everyone has his or her own interpretation of things. Sometimes even the artist’s interpretation of his or her own artwork can change over time.

Chow Chun Fai, 'Infernal Affairs, “I want my identity back”', 2007, enamel paint on canvas.

While everyone’s interpretations may not be exactly the same, Chow believes the messages of culture and identity can easily transcend borders. On his first movie painting depicting a scene from the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, he remarks:

There are many scenes in this movie that cannot be translated, but you would still understand the movie regardless of your cultural background.

Despite being a well-established artist and winning multiple awards such as the Hong Kong Arts Centre 30th Anniversary Award Grand Prize and the Sovereign Asian Art Prize, Chow says being a Hong Kong artist remains a considerable challenge:

…your work needs to involve more than just creativity. You might also need to be your own agent and writer, etc.

The road of creativity can make for a bumpy ride, but Chow maintains a firm belief in himself:

Sometimes you can love what you do. Sometimes you get confused… I believe in everything I do.

Watch the video on the ChooChooTV show [art]attack (length of video, 4:09 mins).

VL/KN

Related Topics: Hong Kong artists, Fotanian artists, videos

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Is text writing or image? Bloomberg prize-winner Phoebe Hui examines – video interview

HONG KONG ARTISTS VIDEO ARTIST INTERVIEW

In a short five minute interview on ChooChooTV’s weekly show [art]attack, emerging Hong Kong artist Phoebe Hui gives viewers a peek at her creative process.

In the interview, Hui expresses a strong interest in the transformation of text from one medium to another.  To her, such transformations serve as a way of linking text to other concepts.

Artist Phoebe Hui at work in her studio.

“The way I view text is not just a form of communication but also as an image.”

By removing the meaning of written words, Hui transforms them into more than just a method of verbal expression. In an early piece titled Doublets Doublets Doublets, Hui bases her process on a game by author Lewis Carroll.

“I will remove one alphabet letter in a word…and gradually change other letters too. These are still text that we are familiar with but once we change it our focus is no longer on the meaning of the text but simply on the relation of the symbols.”

After graduating from the School of Creative Media at the City University of Hong Kong, the artist travelled to England where she studied for a masters degree at the University of the Arts London. Following graduation she decided to move back to Hong Kong.

Although Hui has achieved considerable success as a young artist, it has not come without disappointments. On her move to London from Hong Kong Hui states:

“For me, my path from attaining the scholarship from HKADC [Hong Kong Arts and Development Council], I thought I would have a very successful year in London, but it was not as good as I thought it would be.”

In spite of this setback, Hui went on to win the Bloomberg Emerging Artist award in 2008 after her return to Hong Kong, an accomplishment she is “very satifisfied with.”

While she expresses concern about support for artists’ programs from both organisations and Hong Kong audiences, she remains positive and driven.

“It seems like a very successful road, but I’m still not where I want to be.”

Watch the video here (length of video, 5:22 mins).

EH/KN

Related Topics: Hong Kong artists, emerging artists, installation art, conceptual art

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• Sound Art, Trickery and Time-Interview Hong Kong New Media artist Chilai Howard Cheng – November 2009
• Young Chinese Artists The Next Generation- Book Review – June 2009

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Auction topper Indonesian artist Masriadi video interview with Singapore Art Museum

INDONESIAN ARTIST VIDEO INTERVIEW