Attuning to the minutiae of daily life, artists often find their muse in the overlooked, transforming it into deeply moving creative expressions.
Chau Sze Ling Aki from Hong Kong Baptist University depicts still lifes of daily objects that bear the passage of time, inviting viewers to uncover the narratives hidden within their spatial arrangements. Tse Yuen Shan Angela translates intense emotions into subjective viewpoints: “Before Flushing” renders a blurred and trembling faucet through the tearful eyes of a grieving protagonist, while “Overload I” employs ghosting imagery of the violent shaking inside the elevator to evoke an impending psychological breakdown.
Other artists anchor their exploration of life’s meaning through photography and drawings from nature. Lau Ting Fung Nick, from Hong Kong Baptist University, utilises rich and delicate charcoal drawings to document the everyday life of his hometown, capturing nostalgic moments akin to memory-laden black-and-white photographs. Chiu Kar Man Karman from Hong Kong Art School captures the natural gestures of pedestrians and later transforms these photographic records into vibrant abstract paintings to reconstruct people’s stories. Chung Cheuk Wing Kathryn takes inspiration from life drawings of the city’s recreational spaces for her surreal paintings, using floating scenery to investigate how everyday behaviours and experiences shape our understanding of space.
Artists would also construct imaginary worlds as a means to ponder life. Leung Lok Yi Janice, from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, creates eerie and contorted architectural spaces in her Breathing Pores series. On these ambiguous, intersecting paths, her subjects find unexpected moments of respite. On Tsz Tung from Hong Kong Baptist University uses “emergency exits” as the theme for her mineral pigment series. By combining various 2-dimensional elements, it forms engaging compositions that echo her anxious desire for escape. Heung Lok Ping Angela from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, encapsulates the instances of play through her ceramic work of intersecting paints and form, it expresses the people’s vitality in a playful, organic touch.