Gallery owner takes it personally in signing up artists
Before buying any works, gallery owner Catherine Kwai takes the time to find out more about the artists, their characters and artistic philosophy, writes Kate Whitehead
Catherine Kwai rarely buys an artwork when she doesn't know anything about the artist. Ideally, she will sit down with the artist, share a meal and have a long conversation about what has shaped their life and work.
"Art reflects a person's inner character, feelings and philosophy. When I talk to an artist, I want to see a connection between their life experience and their teaching," says Kwai, the founder of Kwai Fung Hin Art Gallery.
She's wary when she can't see any links in the evolution of their work, as this suggests that they might be following market trends rather than developing their own vision. "You can't change your personality from one day to the next. Real masters really create, they want to break through and go to a higher level, but you can always see the link in their work."
Kwai entered the Chinese art market in the very early days, before there even was a market. It all began in 1986 when her art teacher invited her to join him on a trip to Nanjing. The trip would shape the life of the then young banker. Although art collecting was new, painting was something she'd enjoyed since childhood. "I painted two hours a day and my father encouraged me. I won awards at school, but the day I said I wanted to be an artist he said, 'You can take it as leisure, but you need to study something more practical at university and find a good job'," recalls Kwai.
The sensible subject was accounting and economics and as soon as she finished her degree at UCLA in the US she returned to Hong Kong. It was the early 1980s and jobs in finance were plentiful. She started at Chase Manhattan, married her childhood sweetheart and had three children, but all along she kept up her interest in painting.
I only select the artists I like. If I don’t believe in them, then why should I spend so many hours doing brochures and promoting them?
That first trip to the mainland with her art teacher was an eye-opener. "It was so exciting. There was no free market. At that time, with 10,000 yuan you could buy a house and if you could pay in US dollars cash they'd give you a 30 per cent discount," says Kwai.