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Grotto Projects

Grotto Fine Art, established in 2001, is a gallery specializing in Hong Kong contemporary art.  Our mission is to promote local artists of Hong Kong.  Based in Hong Kong, a city known for its unique combination of different cultures, the gallery is dedicated to local artistic production with a particular interest in the newest and most avant-garde art forms.
(Artists are listed in alphabetical order)

 


Mao as Elvis
Hand-glazed porcelain

 


CHENG, Caroline
(b.1962)

is the brain behind the Pottery Workshop at the Fringe Club, Hong Kong's premier ceramic studios. Like her curatorial ability, Cheng's creative strength is also based on her keen observation and understanding of Chinese history, both ancient and contemporary. Using political and social icons as central themes, Cheng's ceramic works satirize current issues often by metaphoric titles, humorous composition and bold colors. They are the most daring and cynical expressions in the current local art circle.

 

 


Streets of Mong Kok
Oil on canvas

CHENG, Chi-Fai (b.1971)

Cheng Chi-fai is an accomplished oil painter focusing on local landscape and city scene. Educated at the Coventry University in England, Cheng received classical training in painting and drawing. Cheng's works demonstrate strong commitment to Renaissance's perspective, chiaroscuro and composition but maintain faithfully local in terms of the subject depicted. Both nostalgic and poetic, Cheng's old streets and neighbourhoods bring back memories of the golden age.

 

 


Imitating Tartar Pipe Eighteen
Beats no. 2 – Going to the North

Mixed media on wooden board


CHENG, HALLEY (b.1986)

is a young Hong Kong artist whose artistic career spans a decade despite his age. Having mastered ancient landscape painting at an early age, Cheng entered the Chinese University Fine Arts department with a repertoire of skills. Upon graduation, Cheng focused on a collection of imitations of ancient masterpieces. Instead of forging an exact copy, Cheng aimed to recreate the appearance of subject with new medium such as charcoal, biro, adhesive tiles and pencil. Even the boarder of the painting is redone to create a new visual boundary. It is through this interaction of mediums that a synergy of expression become contemporary and relevant to the artist's root and age.

 

 


Taxi
Oil on canvas, triptych

 

 

CHOW, Chun-fai (b.1980)

is a well-established artist despite his young age. Graduating with multiple awards from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2003, CHOW's work features street scenes and interiors that are devoid of numbers or signs. The absence of contextual information gives the viewer a timeless picture much like a snap shot or a scene in a movie. What CHOW intends to do is to redirect his audience to his brushwork and forms and, by adding sharp perspective to resemble a tunnel vision, presents a dramatic yet subtle image of a particular moment in time.

 

 

 


Detail of Su Dongpo Travelling
Ink & colour on paper


DING, Yanyong (1902-78)

Ding's legacy as an artist started in the early part of the 20th century.  A student of Western art in 1920's, Ding went to Tokyo to study modern art and was particularly attracted to the works of Matisse and the Fauves.  In 1949, Ding settled in Hong Kong and began his career with painting classical Chinese genres such as birds and flowers and figures.  Ding's works combined expressive brushwork and precise execution and never fail to give life to his given objects or forms.  Ding's unique style is perhaps best portrayed in his paintings of legends and opera singers wherein his unparallel mastery of the Chinese ink and brush and humor lied.

 

 


Self portrait
Oil on canvas

 

FOK, Flora

Fok's painting focuses primarily on portraiture with a heavily textured surfaces and strong color contrast. Influences from Matisse, Van Gogh and Picasso are easily found in the application of vibrant colors and cubist composition. Yet Fok's personal expression is transmitted through her use of contrasting forms and contours, thus generating an underlying psychological tension. A crunched fist, a twisted face or an awkward sitting position is vital to her powerful expressive approach as they create countless visual and textural combinations.

 

 


First Step, detail

 

FUNG, Kevin (b.1964)

Kevin Fung received his tertiary education in Canada and now works as engineer in the telecommunication industry. Fung's works concern the customs and predicament from the bourgeoisie in Hong Kong. Fung has been involved in numerous exhibitions locally and abroad and his works are collected by private collectors, institutes, museum and have been featured in Contemporary Asian Art in Sotheby's.

 

 


Little Creepy Crawler
Mixed media on wood

 

HO, Sin-Tung

Ho Sin Tung graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong with a degree in Fine Art in 2008. Tung's work adopts the conventions of nineteenth century engraving and cartography in order to chart fragmented personal and vicarious experiences and recollections of people and places. Working with painting and also video and mixed media, Tung has exhibited in Hong Kong and has received a number of awards including the Hui Yeung Sung Fine Arts Award and the Lui Lup-fun Curatorial award.

 

 


Body Frame
Bronze & light box, 178x35x20 cm, 2006

 

HO, Siu-Kee (b. 1964)

Ho Siu-Kee was born in Hong Kong in 1964. He received the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1989, Master of Fine Arts in sculpture from the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan , USA in 1995 and Doctor of Fine Art at the RMIT University, Australia in 2003. Ho has been an indispensable part of Hong Kong art and participated in numerous exhibitions locally and abroad, most noticeably representing Hong Kong at the 49 th Venice Biennial, Italy in 2001.

2009

 

 


White Water XXXIX
Ink & colour on paper

 

KAN, Kit-keung (b.1943)

Dr. Kan Kit-Keung is a man of science and art. By profession, he is a physicist whose research concentrates on the building of a model to describe nature. As an artist, Kan's description of nature focuses on its visual and external order. Using traditional painting techniques such as “tsun" (texture) strokes and motifs, Kan delineates our visual world, minimized his hills and mountains, and gives his landscape a new sense of order and rhythm reminiscent of a modern architecture. By inserting a sense of lyricism into the abstract geometry and logic, Kan's art is redefining the fundamental building blocks of nature. The result is both enticing and visually stunning.

 

 


Ms Giraffe
Acrylic & ceramic clay on canvas

 

KWOK, Ying (b.1977)

Kwok Ying's works focus on patterns and how different combination of simple forms can generate broader visual connotation. A physical artist who likes to use heavy industrial materials and labor-intensive works, Kwok applies pencil or ink on canvas that is pre-treated with a layer of ceramic clay. The artist creates repetitive patterns of organic or textile origins, at times imitating everyday fabrics while sometimes resembling animal skins. The finished pieces exert a unique sense of lightness and heaviness, masculinity and femininity reflective of the artist's character. In 2001, Kwok Ying won a Fine Art Award at the Hong Kong Art Biennial Exhibition and, in 2002, the Hong Kong Museum of Art acquired two of her works, making her one of the youngest artists ever collected.

 

 


Snow Mountain III


LAI, Sarah

Despite her young age, Lai is a competent painter who possesses skills and repertoire of an established master. Using earthy tone and pastel hues, her beautiful paintings depict nature from a new perspective. Diluted hues give her work an uncanny sense of quietness similar to that of David Hockney, while the composition takes on a dreamlike atmosphere. A lonely mountain, a swelling wave, or a cloudy sky all become poetic anecdote that transcend time and space. Simple in composition but rich in expression, Lai's painting, like an old photograph, successfully captures a moment of our life when time stood still and nature took hold.

 

 


Twins
sand, Chinese ink & acrylic on wood

 

LAM, TUNG-PANG

A muti-award winning graduate of the Fine Arts department at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Lam's graduating works feature the use of "raw" materials such as sand, mud and grass and their integration with conventional materials like acrylics and charcoal. Landscape is the central theme of the works of Lam who is able to create unsurpassed texture with the materials' natural quality. Combining heavy texture and minimalist composition, Lam's works are real yet surreal as well as provocative and innovative.

 

 


Atomic-jellyfish
paper cut, 125x69cm, 2008

 

LEE, Bovey (b.1969)

Bovey Lee's works are well-known for their unique interpretations of the body through digital media and bicultural influences. On display are Lee's collection of paper cutout drawings on rice paper that derive visual and conceptual meanings out of juxtaposition of symbols, forms, and spaces.

2009

 

 


Mountain and Stream No. 3
Stainless steel

 

LEE, Danny Chin-fai (b.1949)

is the present chairman of the Visual Art Society of Hong Kong . He founded the Creative Sculptors Society in Hong Kong in 1993 and has been a full time sculptor since 1998. Danny graduated from Swire School of Design in 1980 and the Extra-mural department of the University of Hong Kong in 1993 focusing on sculpture. His numerous awards include Second Prize (Sculpture) in “Olympic Art and Sport Contest 2000 ( Hong Kong )”, International Olympic Committee (1997) and First Prize (Sculpture) in “New Life”, Hong Kong Hospital Authority (2000). Lee's sculpture can be found in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, The Hong Kong Heritage Museum, The Hong Kong Hospital Authority, Hong Kong Housing Department , Hong Kong Airport Authority.

2009

 

 


Seal No.1
Painted timber

 

LEE, Man sang (b.1962)

is a master craftsman, musician and sculptor. He lives a reclusive life in the rural part of Hong Kong and his art reflects his love of nature and rhythm with strong solitary sentiment. Lee's sculptures combine traditional function of the Chinese seal and the beautiful natural texture of timber wood. They are carved with precision to illustrate rivers and farmlands that surround his home. Lee Man Sang's works have the quality of a sophisticated craft though it is his profound concept and subtlety that distinguish him as a sculptor from his contemporaries.

 

 


Mary Has a Little Lamb
Biro, colour pencil & correction pen on paper,
136x33 cm each (set of 4)

 

LEUNG, Joey Ka-yin (b.1976)

Joey Leung is an independent artist based in Hong Kong . She received her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Fine Arts from the Chinese University in 2000 and 2007 respectively. Leung works are widely collected and her poster works have been exhibited at The International competition Trnava Poster Triennial 2003 (Czec) and the IPT 2003 International Poster Triennial In Toyama, Japan

2010

 

 


Pairs
Acrylic on canvas, 2008

LEUNG, Ching-Man

Ching-man Leung, Castaly, is a 2001 graduate from the Fine Arts department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She is currently a Master of Fine Arts candidate at this department. Leung's work combines repetitive icons from self-made stamps and still life motifs to create a distorted setting where personal sentiments meets surreaistic connotations.

 


Mankind
Stoneware & mixed media

 

LI, Rosanna Wei-han

Rosanna Li is well-known for her robust ceramic figurines imbued with cultural and symbolic meanings that reflect her response to current events in a social context. Her research interest ranges from Shiwan rooftop ceramic figurines for Chinese temples to tableware design. She is an Art Advisor (Hong Kong Art) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, and a founding member and former chairperson of the Contemporary Ceramics Society (Hong Kong). She teaches in the School of Design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Her work can be seen in the Hong Kong Airport and Yau Tong Station, MTR. The latter, entitled “People Passing By, People Lazing By”, is known as the largest outdoor ceramic sculptural group in Hong Kong.

2009

 

 

 


Bank of China
UV print on canvas

 

LIM, William

Lim is an avid art collector and enthusiast as well as an active participant in the local art scene. Lim's work features a series of Hong Kong cityscape photographs entitled “Aura”. With the eyes of an artist, hands of an architect, and heart of a wanderer, Lim creates works that are both nostalgic and mysterious. They possess an intriguing power that gives the buildings a life of their own, or a new life rather, as they suddenly become fresh and interesting again.

 

 


Coexistence II
oil & cords on canvas

 

LO, Yuk Yin Lucille

Lucille Lo's early artistic venture was in the Chinese ink and paper tradition. Her style derived from the Lingnan School's objective depiction and focused on multiple layering of colors. In the year 2000, Lo began her exploration in oil on canvas. With her unique visions and keen observation, Lo created a series of works featuring Hong Kong cityscapes using heavy pigments and everyday objects. The results are stunning visual and conceptual experiences with a distinct local flavor.

 

 


Clam Soldiers
Mixed media

 

LUI, Joe

is graduated with the degree of Bachelors of Arts in The Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2006. Being an artist, now she focuses on doing mixed media sculptures and illustration. She uses toy soldiers and shells to create a humorous scene of war. Her works have exhibited in many galleries and art spaces.

 

 


Detail of Flying Dream III
Mixed media on canvas

 

NG, Kim Ming Bobby (b.1955)

Ng's paintings rest on four basic initiatives: figurative and abstract forms, tradition and modernity.  These elements have been both the creative stimulus and inherited contradiction of this artist's works.  They appear at first as traditional Chinese landscapes with apparent waterfalls and mountains, though upon closer scrutiny, the landscapes turn into pure abstract figuration that recalls the expressive style of Action Painting.  What remains unchanged is a sense of motion, the signature of Ng's art that leads his audience through different time and space.   

 

 


Detail of A Bighorn Sheep
Chinese ink & watercolour on silk

 

SHIEH, Wilson Ka-Ho (b.1970)

is an expert in traditional Chinese brush on silk painting. He recently received his Master of Fine Arts degree and stunned the public with his extremely fine and meticulous paintings at the graduation exhibition.  Shieh's figures exert classical Tang dynasty spirit with their sensuous contours and refined features, yet their unconventional or at times erotic compositions shatter traditional restrictions and boundaries.

2005 2007

 

 


Cimex adjunctus
Ink on drafting film, 60x84 cm, 2007

 

SU, Angela

Angela Su is an independent artist based in Hong Kong . She graduated in 1990 from the University of Toronto and in 1994 from the Ontario College of Art, Canada. Su has held one-woman exhibition in Singapore and Hong Kong and has participated in group exhibition such as the 2 nd Shenzhen Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism in Shenzhen , China and Reversing Horizons, at the Museum of Contemporary Shanghai . In her drawings and embroderies, Su combines her anatomical background with groundbreaking compositions in weaving together elements of alchemical and fantasy nature.

 

 


Porcelain Shoes
Porcelain

 

WONG, Lai Ching Fiona (b.1964)

is a well-known ceramic sculptor and teacher in Hong Kong.  An accomplished sculptor with particular expertise in porcelain, Wong puts strong emphasis on the material's translucency and thereby expresses the delicate relationship between potency and fragility of life.  Wong's  newest works including a mixed-media series that uses the penetrating power of light to generate new and unexpected results through the porcelain surfaces.  Working with a medium that defined China's greatest antiquities, Wong strives to redefine that tradition with her unparallel skills and contemporary vision. 

 

 


Window Dream No.5
ink & collage on paper

 

WONG, Wucius(b.1936)

Wucius Wong has been a pivotal figure in the development of Hong Kong art for the last four decades. Wong's signature style is well known - a combination of Western graphic and Chinese landscape, and he is ever changing with an exploreer's attitude, an element that makes him uniquely successful among his contemporaries. As an artist, he always strives to maintain a close relationship between his works and the time and space in which he lives.

 

 


The World III
Ink on paper Window

 

WONG, Chung Yu

Wong Chung Yu received his Master degree of Computer Science and later pursued a Master of Art degree in Digital Arts in London with scholarship and graduated with distinction. He remains active in the areas of Painting and Digital Art. For Painting, Wong studied painting in the Fine Art department of CUHK and continues his exploration particularly in the area of modern Chinese painting. In the field of digital art, Wong attempts to extend the possibility of programming and multimedia applications. He particularly focuses himself on the harmonization of digital technology with Chinese context.

 

 


Lightwave Memory 12 -
Tumour,detail01

 

WAI, Pong- Yu(b.1982)

Wai Pong-yu received his BA in fine art from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2006. Wai's uses ball-point pen to create repeating lines in forming a sensitive and poetic imageries on the paper. Wai's works are widely collected -- one of his works was recently collected by Asian Art Museum of San Francisco in 2008.