Ming Fay : Journey into Nature

Youtube video 

A Panel Discussion

MING FAY’S ARTISTIC JOURNEY

Panelists include Parker Fay, Director of Ming Fay Art Studio, Lau Kin Wai, Art Critic and Michelle Wong, Researcher and curator. Moderated by Daphne King, Director of Alisan Fine Arts, the discussion focuses on the panelist’s view of Fay’s artistic creation over the years including his public art projects and their personal experiences with the artist, as well as the Epoxy group, an artist circle co-founded by Fay.

About the Exhibition

Alisan Fine Arts is delighted to announce Journey into Nature, the 4th solo exhibition for the Chinese-American sculptor and installation artist, Ming Fay, at our Central space. On display are some of Ming Fay’s works that introduce to the Hong Kong audience for the first time. These include the wishbone series, the Tai Chi figure series, and early sketches that inspired his famous fruit sculptures. Other iconic works, such as the money tree branch and larger than life fruits, nuts and surreal vegetables, are also displayed. The exhibition can be seen as an expansion of Ming Fay’s large-scale installation themed Garden of Life at Art Basel Hong Kong 2022, where viewers were invited into an unconventional Edenic utopia. During this exhibition, the white cube gallery space is transformed into a surreal garden, once again, providing the viewer with an immersive and fantastical experience that is even more joyful for the audience, with one artist this time. The diversity of work traces Fay’s career from the 1970s to now and can be viewed as a mini retrospective. In addition to the display of artworks, a 424-page-monograph of Fay’s life and work has been published in conjunction with the exhibition.

Ming Fay’s work, which draws on his extensive knowledge of both Eastern and Western horticulture and mythologies, primarily comments upon the symbiotic relationship between humans and nature. In his own words, “In modern urban environments, the need for a reminder of the natural world is particularly significant and necessary and I strive to demonstrate the wonder of even the humblest natural forms, lending the viewer a new appreciation of the ordinary.” Inspired by different fruits, seeds, plants and bones, Fay also reworks nature’s forms in order to create imaginary hybrid species. The artist explains, “Much like a scientist, I research and cultivate specific plant forms for their inherent and symbolic qualities, reinterpreting and reinventing them in my studio / laboratory greenhouse.”  This results in works that range from oversized plant forms, theatrical garden-like displays, or overgrown sci-fi inspired environments.

Artist biography

Ming Fay is a New York City based artist whose work primarily focuses on the relationship between humankind and nature. Born in Shanghai in 1943 to artist parents, sculptor Ming Fay grew up in Hong Kong, moving to the United States in 1961 to attend the Columbus College of Art and Design. He received a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Important exhibitions & collections

Fay has exhibited his work extensively across the US and abroad including at The Whitney Museum of Art, The National Academy Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai, Łódź Biennale in Poland, Grounds for Sculpture, Exit Art, the Kresge Gallery at Ramapo College (NJ) and The Hong Kong Museum of Art among many other institutions and galleries. Currently his work is on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, USA until June 2023.

Fay has also created numerous permanent public artworks across the United States including: the mosaics of the Delancey Orchard and Shad Crossing at the Delancey / Essex Subway station in New York City (2004); Pillar Arc in front a federal courthouse in downtown Seattle (2004); Ginkoberry Gwa  at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland (2003); Arbol Magico at Lluberas Park of Yauco, Puerto Rico (2003) and Whitehall Crossing at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal in New York (2005).

In addition, Fay’s works have also been collected by various institutions across the world, including M+ Museum, Hong Kong; Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong; Taipei Fine Art Museum, Taipei; Rhode Island School of Design, Providence; New Museum, New York.

Connection with AFA

Alisan Fine Arts has been representing Ming Fay since 1985, making this year the 37th year of collaboration with the artist. In 2008, Fay was included in the group exhibition at the Hong Kong Museum of Art titled New Ink Art: Innovation and Beyond, curated by the founder and director of the gallery, Mrs. Alice King. During Art Basel Hong Kong this year, Alisan Fine Arts also showcased two of Ming Fay’s large scale installations: Garden of Life and Money Tree, which both discuss the relationship between nature and human society. There will be archival materials of Ming Fay’s past exhibitions with Alisan Fine Arts displayed in the glass shelves of the gallery to offer viewers a clearer picture of the long-standing relationship between the two.