Stephen Wong

'A piece of paper is an eternal space for me to create and explore.'

Stephen Wong

B.1986

Based in Hong Kong

Introduction

Landscape is always the keyword in Stephen Wong’s paintings. His early works are sourced from the landscape scenes of video games, in order to highlight the visual impact from the virtual world. In recent years, Wong keeps hiking to the natural areas of Hong Kong and paints en plein air. Based on the sketches, memories and by adding his own imagination, the canvas works show the sense of traveling and reveal the relationship between mankind and nature.

Education

2008 BA, Fine Arts, Chinese University of Hong Kong

Solo Exhibitions

2024

The Star Ferry Tale, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2022
Dream Travel, Unit, London, UK
Stephen Wong Chun Hei: Maclehose Trail, Bonhams, Hong Kong
MacLehose Trail, Bonhams, Hong Kong

2021
Platform | Stephen Wong Chun Hei, Unit, London, UK
Stephen Wong Chun Hai: Indoor Hundred Islands, Touch Gallery, Hong Kong
Stephen WONG Chun Hai: A Grand Tour in Google Earth, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2020
Hong Kong Spotlight by Art Basel, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2019
Beside the City, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2018
Looking at the sky and the landscape beneath, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2016
Daydream Travelogues, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong
The Passenger, Anita Chan Lai-ling Gallery, Fringe Club, Hong Kong

2015
Hong Kong Mountains, Watercolour Paintings by Wong Chun Hei, HKsowell, Taiwan
Meeting the Mountains Maker, Foo Tak Builing, Hong Kong
The Mountain Speaks, Open Quote, PMQ Hong Kong

2014
Step back to nature, Galerie Ora-Ora, Hong Kong

2012
Stay Lost, Galerie Ora-Ora, Hong Kong

2011
From a Distance, Galerie Ora-Ora, Hong Kong

2010
Someone Bending the Machine: An Exhibition Responding to Artworks of Chow Chun Fai, Galerie Ora-Ora, Hong Kong

2008
Bystander Somewhere, Cattle Depot Artist Village, Hong Kong

2007
Manifesto, New Asia College Chien Mu Library, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Group Exhibitions

2023
Dreamscape Estuary, Unit, London, UK
X PINK 101, X Museum, Beijing, China
A Mirage of a Shining City, Tang Contemporary Art, Hong Kong
Art SG, Unit London, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

2021
Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong
Shining Moment, Tang Contemporary Art, Hong Kong

2020
Hong Kong Experience, Hong Kong Experiment, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong
Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong
The Call of the Green, Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong

2019
The Breath of Landscape – Capture the Skies, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong
Shek-O Sublime, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong
Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2018
These Painters Painters, ROH Projects, Jakarta, Indonesia
Depends on Eyes, Form Society, Hong Kong
Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2017
Art Shenzhen 2017, Gallery EXIT, Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong
Art Basel Hong Kong 2017, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong
Scenery Poem, Project Fulfill Art Space, Taipei, Taiwan
Ensemble, VT Salon Art Space, Taipei, Taiwan
Art Basel Hong Kong, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong

2016
Paperscapes New Works by Stephen Wong Chun Hei and Eric Fok, Karin Weber Gallery, Hong Kong

2014
At the still point of the turning world, Galerie Oa-Ora, Hong Kong

2013
REUNDEFINED, Galerie Oa-Ora, Hong Kong
Traits, Ox Warehouse, Macau, China
Art Fair Hong Kong 2013, Asia Hotel, Hong Kong

2012
Fine Art Asia 2011, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong

2011
Art Asia Miami 2011, Miami, USA
No Between, Galerie Oa-Ora, Hong Kong

2010
Tasting Hong Kong: Hong Kong Toy, Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong
Haven’t you Heard, Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong
Stretched Connotations, White Tube Gallery, Hong Kong Art Centre, Hong Kong

2009
Hiking Arte, K11, Hong Kong
Dwelling, Osage Kwun tong, Hong Kong
Point-to-point, site-specific art project, Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation, Hong Kong

2008
New Trend, Cattle Depot Artists Village, Hong Kong

Residencies

2023
Jesus College Oxford and Visiting Fellow in Art, Jesus College Oxford, Oxford, UK

Selected Press

2023

December ‘Stephen Wong on His Technicolor Landscapes, Where David Hockney Meets Anime’, Artnet News

2022
December ‘The Weekender, great exhibition at Unit London’ GalleriesNOW
March ‘Stephen Wong: The painter who builds up landscapes like Lego’, CNN
February ‘The Beauty of Hong Kong Trails, Captured by a Painter Who Spends His Days Hiking’, Tatler

2021
August ‘Artist Stephen Wong Chun-Hei On His Love For Hong Kong’s Landscapes’, Tatler Asia
July ‘Stephen Wong Chun Hei: A Grand Tour in Google Earth’, Culture Plus Asia
‘Around the World in One Day: Exploring “A Grand Tour in Google Earth’, The Value
‘Are scenes drawn from Google Earth landscape painting? Hong Kong artist asked the question in his latest exhibition’, South China Morning Post
May ‘Hong Kong Collectors Finally Started Paying Attention to Local Artists During Lockdown. But Will It Last?’, Artnet News
‘Price Check! Here’s What Sold At Art Basel Hong Kong 2021 – and for How Much’, Artnet News
April ‘Take a trip in the otherworldly landscapes of Stephen Wong Chun Hei’, It’s Nice That
March ‘More Than Reality: How Stephen Wong Paints During the Pandemic’, Zolima City Magazine

2020
December ‘Hong Kong Roundup by Aaina Bhargava’, Art Agenda

2019
September ‘Impressions of Hong Kong’, The Standard

2018
August ‘Off the Beaten Path of Hong Kong with Painter Stephen Wong Chun Hei’, Cobo Social

2015
‘100 Mountains’, MAJO Design

Collections

Amoli Foundation, Hong Kong
Nassima Landau Foundation, Tel Aviv, Israel
X Museum, Beijing, China
M + Museum, Hong Kong
Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong
Swire Group, Hong Kong

“My tool for capturing what we see in our daily lives is a slow and subjective way of documentation. For me the process is another journey to explore.”

– Stephen Wong

Driven by a love of exploration, Stephen Wong amalgamates of travel photography, rough sketches, memory, instinct and imagination in his paintings. Bird’s-eye views of sweeping landscapes and archaeological landmarks distinguish his practice. By combining elements that are both real and imagined, he creates liminal places that can only be visited through his immersive depictions. Vividly rendered in a prismatic palette of sharply contrasted and saturated hues, Wong references the works of David Hockney and Felix Valloton, drawing inspiration from organic structures and simple forms.

Wong’s strong visual language is based in the spontaneous painterly approach of en plein air. Equipped with a sketchbook and paint, he embarks on long hikes and invites the viewer to join him in a vibrant world of low-lying hills, valleys, streams, waterfalls and distinctive landmarks surrounding his hometown of Hong Kong. By painting from memory and preliminary drawings, Wong allows himself freedom of interpretation and gives the viewer a glimpse into his mind and creative process. As a stylistic approach, his loose brushwork is rooted in capturing a moment in time, such as the way the evening light adorns a mountain peak or the abrasive crashing of waves on the shore.

Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.
Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.
Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.
Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.
Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.
Installation View: Stephen Wong, Dream Travel, Unit, 2022.

Works

Stephen Wong

Lugard Road and the Victoria Harbour

2022

Acrylic on canvas
150 x 200 cm

Stephen Wong

Lugard Fall and Lamma Island

2022

Acrylic on canvas
180 x 130 cm

Stephen Wong

Chun Hom Kok and Ocean Park

2022

Acrylic on canvas
100 x 150 cm

Stephen Wong

The Full Moon at Po Pin Chau

2022

Acrylic on canvas
50 x 70 cm

Stephen Wong

Google Earth Road Trip to UK: Three Sisters

2022

Acrylic on canvas
30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

Google Earth Road Trip to UK: Glenfinnan Viaduct

2022

Acrylic on canvas
30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

Google Earth Road Trip to UK: Stonehenge

2022

Acrylic on canvas
30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Cliffs in Dover, United Kingdom

2021

Acrylic on canvas

30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

The Lion Rock

2022

Acrylic on canvas
50 x 70 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Cliffs in Dover, United Kingdom

2021

Acrylic on canvas

30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Dolomites, Italy

2021

Acrylic on canvas

50 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Jat’s Incline, Hong Kong

2021

Acrylic on canvas

50 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Mont Saint Michel, France

2021

Acrylic on canvas

40 x 50 cm

Stephen Wong

A Road Trip in Google Earth: Mount Fuji, Japan

2021

Acrylic on canvas

30 x 40 cm

Stephen Wong

Goats Island

2021

Acrylic on canvas

30 x 40 cm

Exhibitions

Watch

Biography

Stephen Wong Chun Hei (b. 1986) is a Hong Kong based artist. He graduated from the Fine Art Department (CUHK) in 2008. In 2023, Wong completed an Artist Residency and Visiting Fellowship at Jesus College, Oxford University, United Kingdom.

Selected solo exhibitions include Dream Travel, Unit,, UK (2022); Stephen Wong Chun Hei: Maclehose Trail, Bonhams, Hong Kong (2022); Indoor Hundred Islands, Touch Gallery, Hong Kong (2021) and A Grand Tour in Google Earth, Gallery EXIT, Hong Kong (2021).

Selected group exhibitions include Art Basel Hong Kong with Gallery Exit (2023); Art SG Singapore with Unit (2022), The Breath of Landscape at the Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, in 2019 and These Painters’ Painters at ROH Projects, Jakarta, in 2018. Wong’s paintings are held in the permanent collections of the X Museum, Beijing, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, Amoli Foundation, Hong Kong and Nassima Landau Foundation, Tel Aviv, Israel.

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Stephen Wong

Stephen Wong

Introduction

Introduction

Education

Solo Exhibitions

Group Exhibitions

Residencies

Selected Press

Collections

“My tool for capturing what we see in our daily lives is a slow and subjective way of documentation. For me the process is another journey to explore.”

Works

Exhibitions

Group Exhibition curated by Laura Shao

A decade of Unit London

Art Fair, Singapore

Dream Travel

Watch

Biography

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Tyler Hobbs

Esther Janssen

Jess Allen

Stacey Gillian Abe

Joshua Hagler

Jake Wood-Evans

Bobbi Essers

Mauro C. Martinez

Ziping Wang

Jeremy Olson

Unit, Mayfair

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