10 Questions with Kelly Zhong

Kelly Zhong was born in Vancouver, BC, and currently works in New York, NY. She earned her Master of Arts in Museum Studies from New York University in 2022 and her Bachelor of Fine Arts, summa cum laude from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in 2018. Her work explores the role of relationships and the various forms they manifest within ourselves and others. Working predominantly in drawing and the style of realism, she renders her subjects in a meditative and detailed fashion. Her drawings often express her emotions, thoughts, and relationships. She views her artwork as informal self-portraits – drawings that reflect parts of herself without ever showing actual facial features. Instead, body language is used to convey mental states and actions. From this ambiguity, she invites viewers to reflect on similar experiences and cast their own perspectives on situations. She has exhibited her artwork in 311 Gallery, 2023, “Telling Stories” (Shoebox LA, 2022), MVA Gallery, 2022, “ArtRich 2019” (The Richmond Art Gallery, 2019), “Discovery” (Seymour Art Gallery, 2018), “39th Annual Paper in Particular” (Sidney Larson Gallery, 2018), among others.

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INTERVIEW

Let’s talk about your background first. How did you get interested in making art? And when did you decide you wanted to be an artist?

Growing up, I was always the shy and quiet student in all my classes at school. My family and I also immigrated to Vancouver, BC from China which I believe in many ways the language barrier and cultural differences also affected my difficulties in connecting with my peers. However, my favorite time of the school day was during art, and it was the only time when I felt comfortable and excited to be learning how to use new art materials or learn a new drawing technique. It was during one of these art periods in which, I believe, I kickstarted my passion for drawing.
During that art class, my teacher taught us how to draw tulips with oil pastels. She walked us through the basic process of laying down the foundation for the flower on paper but encouraged us to decide how we wanted to apply the color. It was my first time working with the medium, but I remember being super satisfied with how my drawing turned out. I did not think anything of it at the time and viewed it as any other class assignment. A few weeks later, I was with my parents at my city’s community center. As we were walking through the building, I suddenly saw my drawing displayed amongst other drawings in our city’s annual student art exhibition. It was my first introduction to the concept of exhibiting your artwork. I felt super proud of having my artwork in the exhibition and through this small accomplishment, I gained the confidence to participate during class and take more initiative to speak with my classmates during school. This exhibition opportunity also set my personal drive to become an artist and push myself to improve my drawing skills. I wanted to exhibit my artwork for even more people to see and connect with.

Sink Face, Graphite on paper, 11.6x16.5 in, 2016 © Kelly Zhong

What training or experiences helped you develop into the artist you are today?

I obtained my Bachelor of Fine Arts, summa cum laude, from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) where I majored in General Fine Arts with a minor in Art History and a concentration in Curatorial Studies. My undergraduate experience really helped shape my practice as an artist, and it introduced me to the art world at large. I am super grateful for this experience as it opened opportunities for me to exhibit my work and connect with established artists. In addition to my art practice, I am really interested in the museum world and the operational side of art exhibitions. I obtained my master’s degree in Museum Studies from New York University, and this experience also helped to develop and expand my identity as an artist.
Other experiences outside of my training that inspired and helped me to develop into the artist I am today include going to see as many exhibitions as I can throughout museums and galleries. I am fortunate enough to live in a city where there are so many amazing cultural institutions that constantly have new exhibitions and programs. Every time I visit a new show, I always feel so inspired by the work that artists create and the effort that goes into executing an exhibition. However, I believe the biggest experiences that have pushed me to become the artist I am today is surrounding myself with a strong support network of friends and colleagues that are working in the art world. I am extremely grateful to have friends who are artists, curators, and researchers that inspire me every day with all the amazing work that they do. They constantly push me to think bigger, aim higher, and strive to be the best that I can become. I do not think I would be here today without all their support throughout the years. I think it is super important to have a group of like-minded people that you know you can rely on for help and be a support system for them as well.

You work predominantly with drawing. Why did you choose this technique? And what does it represent for you?

I work predominantly with drawing because I find it to be a very meditative process. I enjoy carving out my composition by marking marks on the paper and witnessing how individual lines can transform into figures, objects, and landscapes with light and shadow. For me, drawing also represents my earliest introduction to art. Drawing is the first technique I learned and the one I connect the most with. I also think that drawing as a medium is often overlooked in comparison to other techniques, such as painting and sculpture. However, I always gravitate toward drawings when I am at a museum or gallery. Although these pieces may not be as flashy as the other works in the exhibition, I think drawings offer viewers space for a quieter and slower contemplation of art.

Your drawings are mostly black and white. Why do you avoid color?

I do not intentionally avoid color per se, but for the past couple of years, I have tended to gravitate toward working in black and white. Since my artworks explore personal narratives, the lack of color in many of my pieces reflects the thoughts and emotions I experienced throughout various points in my life. Obviously, viewers can perceive that these emotions may not be the most positive and, in many cases, they express feelings of anxiety, loss, and melancholy. However, I do not think I will work in black and white forever, as your practice will change as you continue to evolve as an artist. I am open to exploring and working in color for future projects.

In your work, you often portray people not facing the viewers, with their heads inside drawers or appliances. What messages do you want to convey? And why did you choose this style?

In my work, I often try to create compositions that will elicit uncanny feelings in viewers. My work mainly explores the role of relationships and the various forms they manifest within ourselves and others. My drawings often express my emotions, thoughts, and relationships throughout various points in my life. I also view my artworks as informal self-portraits – drawings that reflect parts of myself without ever showing any actual facial features. Instead, I utilize body language to convey my experiences throughout moments and snapshots of my life. From this ambiguity, I invite viewers to reflect on similar experiences and cast their own perspectives.
These pieces that portray myself facing away from the viewers are from my “You Can’t See Me” series. Drawings from this series explored the feelings of loneliness and anxiety often associated with growing up. As you grow older, there is an expectation that you will gain more confidence and have solid control over what you want to do and accomplish. Yet, at the time I drew these pieces, my confidence level seemed to be plunging lower and lower. I constantly felt like I was unable to speak my mind for fear of others judging me for every thought or statement I made. Thus, these drawings illustrated thoughts of utter hopelessness in many situations where I may have said the wrong thing or done something to inconvenience those around me. Just like how ostriches stick their heads in the sand to hide from their surroundings, I also tried to hide from the outside world by sticking my own head into various openings. The ostrich may perceive itself as invisible to others but, the outside world can see the bird perfectly fine. No matter how hard I try to hide away, these containers are all too small and, in the end, I am still exposed to those around me.

Toilet Head II, Graphite on paper, 11.6x16.5 in, 2018 © Kelly Zhong

Hands are another recurring theme in your work. What do you find so fascinating about hands?

I view my artworks as informal self-portraits expressing my emotions, thoughts, and relationships with those around me. Thus, I like to use body gestures to reflect these aspects of myself in my drawings. I rarely include facial features as I want my audiences to develop their own narrative by looking at how I have placed my hands, feet, or whole body. As such, I am interested in drawing hands because I think they can express these emotions in an alternative way. There is also something fascinating about using my own hands to draw my hands on the paper.

Can you tell us about the process of creating your work? How do you go from the first idea to the finished work?

All my drawings and projects start with an initial concept influenced by either an experience, a feeling, or a small moment from my everyday life. When an idea first comes up, I always try to capture it by writing it down and then revisiting it in a couple of days. I like having some time in between so that when I reflect on the idea again, I can really consider if it is a project I want to pursue. From there, I will plan initial sketches or figure out how to execute the project. I always try to give myself some room to be flexible as I know that throughout the creative process, my ideas might change or evolve into something else entirely.

Drawer Face, Graphite on paper, 11.6x16.5 in, 2016 © Kelly Zhong

What are you working on now, and what are your plans for the future? Anything exciting you can tell us about?

It’s been a busy year for me, and I am continuing to exhibit my artwork in a variety of venues while advancing my career as a writer. Some exhibitions I have had the pleasure of presenting my work at include Maryland Art Place, the Sidney Larson Gallery, Seymour Art Gallery, Richmond Art Gallery, MVA gallery, among others.
Along with exhibiting my work, I had the opportunity to expand my experiences in other avenues I am passionate about. I presented a workshop this year at the annual National Partnership for Educational Access (NPEA) 2022 conference. This was a great honor for me to be invited to attend along with others in the education field related to art, and it was so amazing to present a workshop for a national audience. Currently, I am co-writing a forthcoming book on 15 contemporary Latin American visual artists. I have really enjoyed interviewing all the artists in the publication, and I cannot wait for the book to be published!

What do you think of the art community and market?

In addition to my art practice, I also work within a museum in Development. Working for an art institution on the more administrative side provides me with another perspective on the art community. I enjoy learning all the other facets that go into creating large-scale exhibitions and, in many aspects, what drives the art market. As well, I often feel the most inspired when I visit museums and galleries. I love exploring exhibitions and learning about the creative process behind other artists’ work. I think it is also a strange yet captivating experience when you go to a museum and look at art with either people you know or amongst strangers. You stand in a public space next to crowds of other visitors but have an intimate and private experience with the art in front of you. I always think about this public yet private viewing experience whenever I go visit a museum.

And lastly, where do you see yourself and your work five years from now?

I see myself continuing my practice as a professional artist and working within either museums or non-profit organizations. In addition, I want to expand my skills as a writer, as this has greatly helped me expand my art practice. I am also super interested in public art, and I would love to delve into that side of my practice five years from now. I want to work closely and in collaboration with members of the community to create works that can provoke dialogue around relevant issues or express a shared goal or idea. I believe that public art has the capacity to provide people who either intentionally or unintentionally view them, a greater sense of self, identity, or shared experience. As well, it will be great to have an artwork up in public for everyone to see without having viewers going to a museum or a gallery.

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