Wong Hoy Cheong (1960)

A portrait Madan Lama from Pokhara, Nepal

charcoal on paper, 127x90 cm

Wong Hoy Cheong (Penang, Malaysia, in 1960)

In an attempt to escape the solitude and stasis of painting, Wong employs mediums that he considers collaborative, and which effectively mix historical depth with human immediacy; he works in drawing, photography, video, installation, and performance. During the 1990s, he developed an interest in the migration of plants. This inquiry led him to investigate human migration and the related subjects of race, colonization, and indigeneity. Wong blurs the divide between fact and fiction in a deliberately unreliable representation of so-called history. In his manipulated images Wong depicts migrant populations and traces the changing face of ordinary life while excavating the obscured cultural histories of marginalized communities elsewhere in the world. Wong's practice is often concerned with exploring Malaysian identity in such indirect ways. In his view Malaysia is one of the world's most multi-ethnic and multicultural nations. Wong's artistic practice has been influenced by his education in the United States, which provided a new perspective in his areas of concern. He has exhibited in the most prestigious museums and art exhibitions to mention just a few such as: the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo (1997); Fukuoka Asian Art Triennial, Japan (1999 and 2009); Venice Biennale (2003); Liverpool Biennial (2004); Guangzhou Triennial, China (2005); Naked Life, Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (2006); Taipei Biennial (2008) etc. Wong lives and works in Kuala Lumpur.

References: Ocula.com and Guggenheim.org