Choi Yan Chi

Choi Yan Chi is an artist, educator and curator known for her early instigation of conceptual art in Hong Kong. Yan Chi completed a BA Fine Art and a MFA in Painting at the Art Institute of Chicago (1972–8). She works across various media, including installation, performance, and painting, to produce work that has been inspired by the postmodern and deconstructionist theories of the 1970s and 80s. Her exhibition An Extension into Space (1985) at the Hong Kong Arts Centre had a radical impact on the contemporary arts scene in Hong Kong. Her pioneering role in this field is evidenced by her giving the translation of ‘installation art’ in Cantonese. In 1998 Yan Chi co-founded the arts organisation 1a space with funding from Hong Kong Arts Development Council. The non-profit independent art space was the first of its kind in Hong Kong. Extensive travel abroad has informed her understanding of personal cultural identity, which she explores in relation to Hong Kong as an important theme of her work.