For the past three years, Hong Kong artist Chris Huen Sin Kan has been reminding himself to stay on course of his artistic practice despite finding himself in the midst of transformative changes. But that proves to be challenging.
For an artist like Huen, whose poignant paintings draw inspirations from his surroundings and people (and dogs) around him, a change of his art is simply a mirror to his life. He relocated from his hometown to London in 2021. He then left his gallery Simon Lee just before it shuttered, while in search of new opportunities in one of the world’s biggest art capitals.
“When I first moved here, people often asked me if my work would change. I constantly remind myself not to change my art deliberately. I’m still the same me even though I’ve moved to a new place,” the soft-spoken Huen said to me in May. “My creation is parallel to my life, like walking with two feet. There is a connection between my new paintings and these life changing moments.”
Chris Huen Sin Kan, MuiMui (2024). Photo: Ben Westoby.
The paintings he has created against such a backdrop are noticeably different. For example, MuiMui (2024), which was recently on view at his first solo exhibition at Matt Carey-Williams’s space at London’s Porchester Place, caught the eye of many of his fans, including those from afar who could only see the painting on social media. The five-foot-tall painting depicting Huen’s dog MuiMui staring at the viewer from the woods against a dark background is a stark contrast to his unique brand of translucence that has made his paintings so collectable. Other smaller works and paintings in new color palette on view at the sell-out exhibition “Forwards and Backwards, Back and Forth” also surprised many observers. He has also been working on a new series of paintings, some in monumental sizes, for his upcoming solo exhibition at Center of International Contemporary Art (CICA) Vancouver, curated by the center’s chief curator Viahsta Yuan. (The show will run from September 26 to November 10).
This swerve in direction is not about the challenges in adjusting to a new home, but rather, a surge of excitement brought by this relocation.
Born in 1991 in Hong Kong, when the city was still under the British colonial rule, Huen often visited London as a child, although he never lived in the U.K. capital. He graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s fine arts department in 2013 and quickly established himself as a star of his generation in the city, a rare homegrown auction darling. His auction record stands at $289,174 for a 2013 work sold at a China Guardian Auctions sale in 2022.
Chris Huen Sin Kan, Joel (2024). Photo: Ben Westoby.
His oil paintings are conceived by fusing the technique of oil painting and that of traditional Chinese ink painting and feature a recurring cast of his wife Haze, son Joel, daughter Tess, and dogs Balltsz, MuiMui, and Doodood. The works exude his spontaneous approach—Huen does not make sketches, underdrawings, or take photos before applying his brushes on the canvas. He lets his intuition takes the lead in his creative journey, with a sense of immediacy.
Upon settling in his adopted home, Huen has found himself in a happier place. He likes the cool temperature in the U.K., opposite to Hong Kong’s warm and humid climate which he does not like. “My life here is very similar to that in Hong Kong, as if we had not moved at all,” he said. “We also drive on the left side of the road in Hong Kong. Most Hong Kong parks do not allow dogs. They do not even allow you to step on the grass. Here, my dogs are very happy.”
But what life in the U.K. delights him the most is his newfound sensation to the surroundings. Hong Kong is a very green place, with approximately 40 percent of the city covered in green spaces. “But the green here is different,” said Huen, beaming with excitement.
“It is not about the plants or a single leaf,” he continued. “It is the light. The green here is bright and vibrant, full of life. The change of seasons is very noticeable. It is the quality of life that cannot be expressed in words, and reconstructing these life experiences on canvas excites me. I have more tools to work with when I return to the studio.”
Installation view of Chris Huen Sin Kan’s exhibition “Forwards and Backwards, Back and Forth” showing a new series of smaller paintings. Courtesy of Matt Carey-Williams.
One change in his art, for example, is that he now paints more outdoor sceneries. He also revisited his early experiments with working on a dark background, and the result is the captivating painting MuiMui. More works in dark background will be shown at the CICA Vancouver, where a total of 16 works will be presented. one work is due to be 13 feet wide. How is working on a dark background different from his signature white background?
“White [background] means blank. White light is the combination of all colors in the color spectrum. It is also emptiness, a concept I acquired from traditional Chinese ink painting. When you add something on a blank canvas, you have created an existence. When I’m paint on a white background, I’m actively looking for something, such as the connection between the objects like flowers, a child, or a leaf. There’s an outward looking perspective,” Huen explained.
“The opposite of white is black. Black is the absence of light, but it is also the combination of all colors mixed together. A black background carries an inward looking perspective. There’s a sense of stillness, as if you were sitting on an armchair processing information and stimulation.”
Huen said his paintings depict the state of daydreaming, a memory scape rather than an actual memory of a particular moment. “But paintings of a dark background are like actual dreams, like your subconscious,” he noted.