Nicole Schoeni
Nicole Schoeni is the director of the Schoeni Art Gallery, which places a strong focus on contemporary Chinese arts and young, emerging artists. Founded by her late father in the 90s, the gallery has become one of the most prominent of its kind. She tells Andrea Lo about running a gallery, the state of the arts in Hong Kong and keeping her father’s legacy alive.
I grew up here. I’m half-Hongkongese, half-Swiss, so I consider myself a Hong Kong kid.
My best childhood memories are all nature-related—having a family barbecue after a hike, and playing along one of the streams and trying to catch little shrimps.
My parents come from very humble backgrounds, and everything we had they had worked for. My father always understood the importance of money in the sense that you have to eat, to be able to rent a place. So he always tried to help a lot of artists along the way.
When I was growing up I imagined myself working at a gallery, but under different circumstances. I hadn’t expected my dad to pass away so suddenly—I thought I would be working alongside him.
It’s been challenging but rewarding. There was a lot I had to learn in a short period of time. But it’s been nine years now. I’m much more confident and comfortable with who I am and what I do.
Having the confidence was very difficult, because I was thrown into it. I have always been quite a sociable person, but I was 23 at the time, and I had to socialize with people who were a lot older and to exude a certain confidence—which I didn’t have at the beginning, but I just pretended I did.