我 me: yipkaichuns (at) gmail (dot) com
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Yip Kai Chun an artist-curator from Hong Kong who works on peripheral and neglected communities and localities, notably in relation to diaspora and island. He approaches them with a research-oriented and socially-engaged approach informed by ethnography, resulting in mixed-media installations with moving images, sound and found objects.
A primary quest of his work is the inheritance and transformation of culture and language in the context of migration — migrants in Hong Kong, Hong Kongers & Chinese people as overseas migrants, and Hong Kong as an essentially migrant city. The major example of this is his continuous exploration of the disconnection, mutation and possibilities of the Hakka identity and language, which stemmed from (the question about) myself as a Hakka. The research has brought him to Hakka communities in Hong Kong, Singapore and Indonesia.
Living on Peng Chau, an outlying island for 8.5 years, has a profound impact on him as an artist and a person. The various creative and curatorial initiatives on the island has led him dive deeper into the perspectives of the island and the ocean — of seeing the city, relating to the ocean, relating to one another, and conceiving of the world. He starts to realise things in common between the strands of diaspora and island: the imagination of connection and isolation and the potential reinvention of relationships. To him, this exploration conjuncts at Hong Kong, whose essence is inseparable from the two.
Curation is an extension of his artistic creation and a chance for him to create broader connections and collaboration. Yip co-founded the Inter-island Festival (2021, 2023 & 2026), a festival celebrating the outlying islands in southwestern Hong Kong.
Artist residence is an important part of his practice to explore, exchange and be challenged by a new environment. He has been to residencies in Indonesia (2025), USA (2024), Singapore (2022), India (2018 & 2019), Armenia (2016), Georgia (2016), Kyrgyzstan (2016) and Portugal (2016). He was awarded Special Mention, Media Art Category, The 21st ifva Media Art Exhibition, Hong Kong (2016). He is the winner of the 3rd VT Open Call, VT Artsalon, Taiwan (2017) and Open Call for Young Curators by Mur Nomade, Hong Kong (2015).
簡歷 (PDF) | Curriculum vitae (PDF)
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創作自述
Artist Statement
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Language, culture and history — things that define our beings — pass down and constantly morph on a macro level, even they are at times conceived as stationary. The context of migration complicates the matter when languages, cultures and histories of two or more places meet, collide and converge. Starting from my own experience with a Hakka father from China migrating to my hometown Hong Kong, I am intrigued by these liminal and peripheral communities and localities, where disconnection and yearning come with uniqueness and potentials.
I immerse myself in these communities and localities with an ethnographic mindset and sincere curiosity and care, trying to connect with the people and places. Even though there is an apparent ‘other’ in many cases, ‘I’ as a creator and person am always an integral and explicit part of the process and work. The personal and micro perspectives unravel the complex resistance, negotiation and mutation at work.
The research-oriented and socially-engaged process results in mixed media installations that comprise moving images, sound, text and found objects, blending into the existing fabric of the space. Often with a fun, everyday and colourful look, my work is relatable, intimate and approachable. Narrativity is an essence of my work. Rather than art objects to be deciphered, my works are experiences of interaction among the subjects, the work, the audiences and myself. Dissolving rooted norms and classifications, my work opens up new knowledge for genuine understanding and connections. While my work sheds light on the myriad, amazing cultures and realities the world inhabits, it nonetheless emphasises the things in common amid diversity, reimagining relationships in the world.
Living on an outlying island in Hong Kong for 8.5 years has a profound impact on me as an artist and a person. Often perceived as marginal and isolated, I see the island and sea under the same lens and meditate on the relationship between the land(sea)scape and the people.
(2 January 2026)