Hong Kong Happenings
P H O T O G R A P H Y
There are great stories behind paintings. What would it be if the content in the paintings are taken away from the original context, and were placed in Hong Kong nowadays? Six modern photos intertextualize six famous paintings, telling you six different stories which you are familiar with, but in a very different way. In the past, Father created Adam and transferred spiritual energy. And now, when a common father raises his son in Hong Kong, what would he give his son? Would the answer be anything spiritual or anything else we are familiar with? These six photos present more than six social issues in a way you have never experienced. You can look at these six photos individually, in pairs, or as a whole, having your instant interpretation of the stories. Also, you can read these six photos as paintings, discover the details that were intentionally put in the set, analyze the hidden symbolic meaning, and recreate stories that we come across every day.
Hong Kong Gothic
Boy with a Basket of Figures
Artist Statement
After finishing The Killers, I keep on studying paintings. I read through the history and found that the stories in paintings are familiar. Actually, nowadays we are repeating history, but in another way. So I started my idea of making this series of photos. Before being a photography student, I asked myself the question, “How long does a photograph live?” If a photo taken by a master, even just a snapshot, it lasts forever. But how about our snapshots? Do they live for 1 second for a glance? We tend to watch a photo, to look at a photo, to glance at a photo. Photography is not a fast food. Photographers spend months and years taking one photo. Is it a joke when it turns out the photo is worth watching for 1 second? Should we respect more? Besides playing with the content of the paintings, I adopt the presentation from the paintings. Titian paints a dog implying fidelity. Hans Holbein the Younger drew an anamorphic skull, encouraging us to read a painting from a different angle. Those tiny details enhance the readability of the pieces. Everything inside the frame does not appear by chance, nor does photography. The bra on the sofa is not an accident. It is a hint, a puzzle, a linkage for you to read, not only for six independent photos but also through six correlated paintings.
Reference
Michelangelo, The Creation of Adam, 1511
James McNeill Whistler, Whistler’s Mother, 1871
Grant Wood, American Gothic, 1930
Caravaggio, Boy with a Basket of Fruit, 1593
Eugène Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, 1830
Jean-François Millet, The Gleaners, 1857
Exhibited in
THREE, 13 Nov 2025, Bridge Studio, London
Image on the Run, 2014, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
2013, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
China Pingyao International Photography Festival, 19 – 25 Sep 2011, Pingyao, China
Simulated Alternate Realities, 5 Oct – 10 Nov 2010, 1a space, Hong Kong
Hong Kong Chronicles, 3 – 10 July 2010, Arles, France
Design Mart x MaD Show @Detour, 26 Nov – 9 Dec 2019, Hong Kong
Joint-University Media Professions Exhibition, 2009, Hong Kong
Inspiration, 2009, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Medialogue, ++++ SCM Media Arts Showcase, 2009, InnoCentre, Hong Kong
Featured in
Photo World issue Sept/2011, CHINA
HK Tatler issue June/2010, HK
Hong Kong Headline, 28Jun2010, HK
Ming Pao, 22Sep2009, HK
PCMarket Advance #832, HK
Wen Wei Po, 6Jul2009, HK
Award
Creative Media Awards (Photography), 2009, HK