A PHONE CALL made to a stranger. A pencil protruding from a tree. The respective works of Hong Kong artists Tozer Pak Sheung-chuen and Jaffa Lam Laam aren't typical gallery fare. It would be difficult to buy most of what they make or do. It's equally hard to categorise their work, as each slides through different genres and media, from sculpture and performance, to photography and community projects.
Although their pieces may be as ephemeral as a chalk drawing on the street, they've already left a lasting imprint as two of the most interesting young artists in Hong Kong. And as the latest recipients of an international grant, Lam and Pak are now set to make their mark overseas, in March and June, respectively.
For more than 40 years, the Asian Cultural Council has funded Asian artists to participate in research, exchanges, and projects in the US. In the footsteps of 400 grantees across the Pacific, Pak and Lam will research contemporary artists and art trends in New York, as well as work on individual projects at residency programmes. Each artist has distinct goals and interests for their time in America.
'In Hong Kong, the habit of making artwork is very familiar to me, so I think I need to go out, think about what I've done before, and make some review of myself,' says Pak of his upcoming trip.
These comments are fitting for an artist whose work is all about a change in perspective. Originally from Fujian, Pak moved to Hong Kong as a child and studied art at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He had trouble finding a job after he graduated, until he participated in a Para/Site Art Space group show responding to Sars. His entry was a piece of clear plastic that had covered an apartment building keypad during the epidemic, protecting residents' fingers from excess germs.
This work caught the attention of a Ming Pao newspaper editor, who asked Pak to write a weekly 'column'. So began Odd One In, an editorial platform for Pak's projects that ran every Sunday for two years until 2006.