10 Questions with Sindy Yeung

Sindy Yeung is an abstract artist based in Hong Kong. Since childhood, she has loved art but was educated in a traditional way and never thought she would be able to create. As she grew up and became busy with work, she gradually put aside painting. 

Sindy had worked in the non-profit sector for more than ten years before resigning from her job in 2019 to rethink her life. She felt so lost until she picked up the paintbrush again. This time, she does not follow any rules but her heart to paint whatever she has a feeling towards. She is surprised to see that she is able to create. She expresses her frustration and confusion through art and often realizes the faith and hope inside herself as she paints, thereby re-visiting her soul. 

sindyyeung.com | @sindyyeung

ARTIST STATEMENT

Sindy likes to create intuitively because she loves the feeling of letting her hands move freely and then being surprised by the magic of colours and different tools or materials. Her purpose in doing art is never to paint an “object” but to portray a belief, a question, a feeling, an emotion, or a vision.

Sindy’s recent works focus on two aspects. The first is “struggles and existence”, how we struggle in all sorts of ups and downs in life and during our self-searching journey (as long as we exist, we struggle); how we live with these struggles, such as our responses to them, our emotional fluctuations arising from them, what we learn from them and what we count on to go through them, etc. The second one is the relationship between human beings and Nature, such as the arrogance of human beings, the power of Nature and our future as a whole, etc.

Currently, Sindy mainly paints with acrylic on canvas. However, she does not want to limit her art or define it by any particular technique or theme. Sindy’s art is evolving, just like herself, but the subject is always something dear to her heart.

INTERVIEW

First of all, introduce yourself to our readers. How did you start experimenting with images?

There are three stages of my art journey so far. The first one was during my childhood. In Hong Kong, almost every child enrolls in some “interest class” after school. When I was a child, “drawing class” was very popular. So I joined different drawing classes during my childhood and adolescence. These classes were taught in a traditional way, and students just copied from some sample paintings. I acquired the basic art skills and senses from these classes but never dared to think I could create. 
I put away art as I grew up and became busier with work. In 2019, I resigned from my project management job to rethink life. I recalled my childhood interest, so I joined a watercolour painting class. But I was still just copying from samples and not creating anything of my own. 
The third stage began in 2020 when I was encouraged by some friends to create my own artwork and started to paint with acrylic. My inspirations emerged, and the long-time emptiness in myself was fulfilled. My inner self also keeps growing through creating my own art. 

In 2019 you left your job, and shortly after, you started your art career. Why are you an artist, and what is your artistic goal? 

Recently, a new friend asked what I am passionate about. I thought for a second and said, “All over my life, I have been striving hard for self-exploration, self-discovery, self-actualization, and self-advancement. This is the largest force pushing me all the time.” Art is the main channel through which I do these. There are millions of self-dialogues in my art and the dialogues that I want to make with the world. 
My artistic goal is to create works that touch people’s hearts and provoke emotions and reflections. I aspire to be an influential international artist and connect myself with people in different parts of the world.

Your work focuses mainly on two themes, the struggles of existence and the relationship between humans and Nature. How do you work on those themes, and how do you incorporate them into your paintings?

I encounter various kinds of struggles every day. They arise from one-off practical things, like scheduling my day, and from long-term spiritual issues, like dealing with my childhood wounds. My art does not mean to record the “content” or “source” of my struggles but share my emotional fluctuations in between and, more importantly, my choice of how to proceed after all these struggles. By moving my hands and splashing colours onto the canvas, I release my emotions and profess my decisions, which are further determined after the struggles. 
I live in Hong Kong, a densely populated city surrounded by skyscrapers. My contact with Nature is usually the few lines of planted trees in parks, being part of the infrastructure and town planning. Yet, this does not limit or undermine my appreciation of Nature’s beauty. It actually makes me cherish Nature more, and inspires me to think about the relationship between Nature and human beings, especially as I witness the obvious destructive behaviours of human beings every day. Through my art, I aim to depict the “life” and “movement” of Nature through free-style brushstrokes and human interference, often through structured lines or marks made by tools I get from the surroundings, e.g., bubble wraps. The chemical reaction created is often surprising. 

What is your creative process like?

I seldom plan in advance what to paint. Even when I do so, I often deviate from my plan and end up just following my instinct. The result is never what I expect at the beginning, but I enjoy the surprise so much. My subconscious mind emerges through this unstructured process and is recorded in my artwork. 

Where do you find inspiration?

The main source of inspiration is my inner dialogues and struggles. Also, I often find inspiration from Cantonese pop songs, when the singers sing aloud in my mother language those things which resemble my heart. As I listen to these songs, images of lines, colours, and shapes appear in my mind.
Another source of my inspiration is casual walks in different neighbourhoods of Hong Kong. What touches me is often the little inconspicuous things here and there, such as the wet leaves after rain and the stains on walls. 

Are there artists you particularly look up to? Any role model you would like to follow?

I do not intend to follow any role model because everyone is unique, though many awesome artists have inspired me. One of these is Yayoi Kusama. I am particularly impressed by her directness, frankness, authenticity, and boldness in presenting herself and what she sees. Another one is Ghidaq al-Nizar, an Indonesian artist who paints with left-over coffee, and on materials like leaves and plates, following his “zero waste” principle. I always struggle to do art in a more environmental-friendly way. This is never easy. Yet, Al-Nizar demonstrates how one can do this and do this very well. 

What do you hope that the public takes away from your work?

I hope my artwork will touch people’s hearts and provoke their emotions and reflections. These emotions and reflections may relate to their inner issues, relationship with themselves, the nature surrounding them, the planet we live on, etc. Through my art, I hope to leave something in their life. And this “something” leads us nearer to our inner and authentic selves. 

What do you think of the recent experiences with art online? Did you have any success in promoting your art online?

The internet has given me exposure, opportunities, and connections. My art career just began, and I am not represented by any gallery, so social media is the main platform for me to introduce my art to the world. When I started uploading my artworks to Instagram two years ago, I didn’t expect anything. Also, I have never done any paid promotion or marketing. I am surprised to see the number of followers increasing, many of which are artists and art-lovers from different parts of the world. From these connections, I get to know other exposure opportunities, such as submission to art magazines and online group exhibitions. The online platform has indeed played an important role in my art career. 

What are your main career goals? How do you see your career evolving in the future?

I aim to be an influential international artist. Of course, it would be great if my work had good sales. But more important is my work and artistic style to be recognised. 

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

I am now preparing for the Affordable Art Fair Hong Kong 2022. It’s my first time participating in a large-scale and international art fair. Naturally, some of my current artworks will be shown, but I also plan to create more in the coming two months, based on my two themes of “struggles” and “nature -human relationship”. 
In addition, I started to paint with coffee and ground recently. So far, the works are of small size and about my beloved places in Hong Kong. I am still experimenting with this skill, and I look forward to more possibilities.