Escape 逃 2011
Venue: Grotto Fine Art, Central, Hong Kong
Exhibition Period: 12 Oct 2011 - 10 Nov 2011
Among contemporary ink painters in Hong Kong, Wong Yee-ki stands out as a surrealist grounded in traditional repertoire. Her fantastic landscapes and images present her inner world and reflect our collective mundane experiences. Wong's paintings are predominately colorful compositions. A wide range of hues mixed with mineral pigment, sporadic use of splash ink, and meticulous contours combined to form overlapping layers of translucent forms. Motifs inspired by comic book and daily lives pay specific tributes to nature; yet through metaphoric and allegorical manipulations, the artist expresses profound messages concerning vanity, insecurity and spiritual refuge.
In this materialistic and often stereotypical society, people become vulnerable without a distinct and clear sense of identity. Wong Yee-ki's painting explores the notion of this collective urban dilemma.
Her bizarre and fantastic images challenge our sensory perception with fear and anxiety. The artist's apparent playful composition marks as stark contrast to the solemn atmosphere. By combining different objects or animals with human faces and expressions, Wong presents a group of loaded metaphors and motifs as in a children story book. However, these are non-organic icons. Our emotional attachments become nothing more than surrealistic symbols. Deliberately dislocating and obscuring common sense, Wong Yee-ki cleverly addresses the present generation's reliance on material indulgence and false sense of security. The irony is, albeit bizarre and surreal, we often found ourselves sharing this collective sentiment and self-reference.
Henry Au-yeung
September 2011