The excerpt concerning HOU Wenyi on the page has been marked out by red squares and arrow. (Jerry Wu\u2723).https://digital.kenyon.edu/zhoudocs/1104/thumbnail.jp

HOU 侯文怡, Wen-Yi

English

Kenyon College: Digital Kenyon - Research, Scholarship, and Creative Exchange

Digital Kenyon: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Exchange Zhou Documents 1994 Catalogue Excerpt: Artist Statement of Wen Yi Hou Wen-Yi HOU 侯文怡 Follow this and additional works at: https://digital.kenyon.edu/zhoudocs Recommended Citation HOU 侯文怡, Wen-Yi, "Catalogue Excerpt: Artist Statement of Wen Yi Hou" (1994). Zhou Documents. 103. https://digital.kenyon.edu/zhoudocs/103 This Exhibition Document is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Kenyon: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Zhou Documents by an authorized administrator of Digital Kenyon: Research, Scholarship, and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact noltj@kenyon.edu. o-r-. ~\{Se,ylfrLPl ~ B()Yd(vr~ ;. M- 0y f<~I ~~r~ I; l3'r(]YIJK M t.0~ - cJl ' l ~~ If-11came to the US to study metal casting. Combiningstudio work, job, and family life has been mostsignificant for me.I have been directing my attention to preserving andinfusing a philosophy to transmit physical, psycho-logical. political, socio-economic as well as religiousattributes to relate my cultural past to a changingsociety of today. Symbolically, I use human experi-ence as a central theme, implicating man in creationand in association with natural and artificial ele-ments to mark the advancement of society.BARBARA ROSE HAUMBorn in Frankfurt, Germany, 1962Born in postwar Germany, I came upon my Jewishbackground later in life. I moved to New York topursue a doctorate in studio art at New YorkUniversity. Living in New York gives me both dis-tance and closeness to my country of origin.Throughout the last four years, I have freely adapt-ed the use of midrash in the visual arts. In theJewish tradition, midrash is the 2,400-year-oldpractice of using Biblical passage or citation as away to illuminate or interpret another. Midrash,from the Hebrew root "derash" (to investigate orto inquire), is the rabbinic interpretation of theBible in general and the Torah in particular.Breaking up the context in which old words arefound, midrash directs their meanings towardsnew places.WEN YlliOUBorn in Shanghai, China, 1957In September 1976, Mao died and university educa-tion reopened for the first time since 1966 to allyoung people. I passed my exams in 1978 andenrolled in two top university programs in China:one in science and the other in fine arts. I chose artas my future career, instead of science, and graduat-ed in 1982 as one of two women in the WesternPainting Program at Zhejiang Academy of Art. As anavant-garde artist practicing free expression, I lostmy job and legal residence in China. I lived illegallyin Shanghai and organized and participated in atraveling group exhibition with other young artistsfrom southwest China. Although the public misun-derstood the art and reacted against it, the exhibi-tion was significant because it was the first to beorganized by artists instead of government officials.In 1986, I received a fellowship and traveled to theUnited States for graduate study at the Universityof California, San Diego. I had an American-bornson, William, and moved to New York City at theend of 1989. Since moving to New York, I havebeen collaborating with a number of non-profitart spaces.~KEIKO KOSHIMITSUBorn in Tokyo, Japan, 1958I was born in 1958, the eldest daughter of a Tokyocompany president. My parents entered me in afamous Catholic school for girls from wealthy fami-lies. From kindergarden to high school, I was strictlyeducated as a reserved woman to one day becomethe wife of a fine man. I decided to go to art school,where I believed there was no discriminationbetween men and women. But it was the same.Professors treated me differently as a woman, andso I gave up trying to be an artist in Japan.I started planning to move to the USA, where Ithought there was no sexual discrimination. I savedmoney working as a teacher and a waitress to go toNew York and in 1984 I moved to the East Village.My life in New York was not easy, but I was happyto have freedom. I worked for four and a half yearsas a waitress in a Japanese restaurant that helped tosponsor me to get a green card. I also started tohave contact with a gallery, but as a no-name artistit was not easy. I had no connections. I finally metwith another great discrimination as a minority inthis country. I believe the mission of the artist is toportray this planet as one of human togetherness,and not one of racial discrimination.KUOZHONGBorn in TaipI was born incame to the Lgraduate andschool, I havely's constant ~US too long, Isyndrome" (ylthe inside). naccording to ring in Englishmuch like blaiwrote and as]movies and wDINH LEBorn in Ha-tien, Vietnam, 1968The major transition in my life occurred whenAmerica's "me" value system became strongerthan the Confucian teachings instilled in me by myparents. It was then that I made the choice tobecome an artist despite my parents wishes to thecontrary. Until this time, I had always followed theConfucian doctrines of obedience to one's eldersand loyalty to the family above one's own self-interests.SHERWIN MJBorn in JohalI left South AiUprising. I mothen to Israelwhere I heardoffered the jonext Monday.Baltimore washave been in IJENNY MARl(Born in AtheI was born in J.first twenty-orto Washingtoryear later I enrwhere I took nI moved to Ne1graduate progliving in New ~In 1987, my bowith my photoGreek immigraBetween 1988Moscow and Siresidence photlectuals in thewriters, directcgroup Studio 060

Catalogue Excerpt: Artist Statement of Wen Yi Hou

https://digital.kenyon.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1104&context=zhoudocs

Catalogue Excerpt: Artist Statement of Wen Yi Hou

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Kenyon College: Digital Kenyon - Research, Scholarship, and Creative Exchange