Ha Bik-Chuen
1925 - 2009
“I have gained an insight into what makes an artist of originality. The first requisite is to ‘change into a spherical-shaped body’, then practice the ‘rolling-over instinct’. If, by any luck, the spherical body manages to sit at the top of a slope, it will be the beginning of a wonderful state. Never become a ‘cumbersome square object’, one that is resistant to change. Knowledge and methods can be borrowed from others, but the ‘the creative acumen’ has to come from oneself.”
Ha Bik-Chuen
| 1925 | : | Born in Jiangmen, Guangdong, China |
| 1932 | : | Stopped schooling due to war |
| 1945 | : | Apprenticed at a paint shop, started selling his paintings for a living |
| 1949 | : | Moved to Macau |
| 1957 | : | Settled in Hong Kong |
| 1960 | : | Joined The Chinese Contemporary Artists' Guild led by Luis Chan |
| 1964 | : | Inspired by Chueng Yee's solo exhibition at the Hong Kong Museum and Art Gallery, started to create prints |
| 1975 | : | Received the Urban Council Fine Arts Awards (Sculpture & Print), at the Exhibition of Contemporary Hong Kong Art |
| 1979 | : | Ha's works introduced to cities in North America, touring across the continent |
| 1990s | : | Traveled to Europe and USA, inspired by Western art. |
| 1991 | : | Received the Artist of the Year Award 1991 (Printmaker of the Year), Hong Kong Artists' Guild |
| 2003 | : | Received the Award for Arts Achievement (Visual Arts), Hong Kong Development Council |
| 2011 | : | Hong Kong Museum of Art mounted posthumous large scale solo retrospective of his life's works: "From Common to Uncommon - The Legend of Ha Bik-Chuen" |
Collected Works
Ha Bik-Chuen (1925 – 2009) was an internationally renowned Hong Kong artist. Ha was born in Guangdong Province, China, and moved to Macau and then Hong Kong in 1957. His career as a self taught artist started in the early 1960s. Throughout Ha’s career he stood by the motto “be brave in experimenting and have no fears in being innovative”. He maintained a young heart, even during old age, and explored many different mediums in his work such as assemblage sculpture, ink painting, photography, mixed media, printmaking and drawing. He had exhibited widely both locally in Hong Kong and internationally.
His many accolades include the Award for Arts Achievement (Visual Arts) in 2003, the first Visual Arts Fellowship from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council in 1997, Printmaker of the Year award from the Hong Kong Artists Guild in 1991 and the Fine Art Award in Sculpture and Printmaking from the Hong Kong Urban Council in 1975. One could often find Ha with his camera at all kinds of exhibition openings, capturing artists and their work. His daring, energetic and diligent personality contributed to his great accomplishments and he gained the great respect of others.
- Asia Art Archive
Exhibitions
Ha’s artworks have been steadily and frequently shown throughout his career, in Hong Kong, Macau, China, Taiwan, and other cities in Asia, Europe and the United States. Here is a short list of exhibitions in his last decade.
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April - July 2011
Hong Kong Museum of Art
Large Scale Solo Retrospective: "From Common to Uncommon - the Legend of Ha Bik-Chuen", at Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong.
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2009
Hong Kong
Oasis-Mirage: Hong Kong International Sculpture Symposium 2009 Exhibition, Hong Kong
Cattle 101@artist village, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
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2008
Hong Kong, Macau, China
The 2nd Chinese Contemporary Printmaking Documentary Exhibition, Nanjing Museum, Nanjing, China
Hong Kong Sculpture Biennale 08, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
Inter-city Modern Sculpture Pieces Collection Exchange Exhibition: Macau - Guangzhou - Hong Kong, Monte Fort Corridor, Macau
“Hong Kong Art: Open Dialogue” Exhibition Series II - New Ink Art: Innovation and Beyond, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong
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2007
Hong Kong
Return to the Motherland, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
Journey to the History of Victoria Prison - Prison Art Museum, Hall D Victoria Prison, Old Bailey Street, Central, Central, Hong Kong
2007/08 Visual ArtsThematic Exhibition: HarmoNow 3D & Installation Art Exhibition, Central Plaza, Hong Kong
Contemporary Hong Kong Chinese Painting Exhibition 2007 - in celebration of the 10th Anniversary of Hong Kong’s Return to the Motherland, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
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2006
Hong Kong, Guangzhou
Hong Kong sCULpTURE:”>M” 1st Hong Kong , Guangzhou and Macau Modern Sculpture Exchange Exhibition, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, China
Ink and the City Exchange Exhibition, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
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2005
Hong Kong, Beijing
The 2nd Beijing International Art Biennale, The China Millennium Monument; National Art Museum of China, Beijing
Your Price: Interactive Art Market, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
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2004
Hong Kong, Korea
The 17th Asian Watercolor Confederation Exhibition, Jeju, Korea
Art of Modern Landscape exhibition, Artist Commune, Hong Kong
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2003
Hong Kong, Beijing
The 1st Beijing International Art Biennale, Beijing
Mapping Asia - the Asian International Art Exhibition, Hong Kong Heritage Museum, Hong Kong
Master Series II: Hong Kong Artists of 1960s, 70s & 80s, Hong Kong
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2002
Hong Kong
Artists in the Neighborhood Scheme II Launching Exhibition, Hong Kong Central Library, Hong Kong
Genius or Madman - Exhibition of RAW ART from Hong Kong and Taiwan, Artists Commune, Hong Kong
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2001
Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Taiwan
New Vision: Hong Kong Contemporary Art Renewal, Hong Kong Central Library, Hong Kong
Contemporary Hong Kong Art Biennale Exhibition, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong
The 16th Asian International Art Exhibition, Guangdong Museum of Art, Guangzhou
The 10th International Biennale Prints and Drawing Exhibition, Taipei Museum of Art, Taiwan
“ Ha is to me a conjurer of time. His prints work from the present moment backwards to capture a state of nature that has disappeared and seek a humanism that is long lost. An elusive era and ambiance are etched on his prints, so we can feel them gently and respond without even knowing it. A quaint world of elegant stylishness comes alive naturally in the modern forms he created, exuding a rich sense of poetry. ”
Prof Choeng Yin-choeng, Vice-president (R&D), Hong Kong Institute of Education
“ If we look at Ha Bik-Chuen’s lifelong career in art, we can see that his eclectic, open approach, his ability to find inspiration from whatever he chanced upon, his forward-looking sanguinity, all these coincide with qualities that sculpted the spirit of Hong Kong, an East-West hub open to the cultural influences of the East and West, driven by an assiduous urge to rise above the ordinary and shine with urban creativity. The city’s essential humanism and characteristics are encapsulated in a local artist caught in a special timeframe that is ‘our Hong Kong’. ”
Tang Hoi-chiu, Chief Curator, Hong Kong Museum of Art
“ In Ha’s abstract art, the message is over and above the visible form itself. Simple, subtle, yet evocative and thought-provoking, the forms of his works may be independent of, and yet implicitly related to the message… Ha’s abstract works are never in danger of being aloof, nor are they riddled with cryptic philosophizing and didactic persuasion. Quite the contrary, the affable familiarity of his works is conducive to a feeling of empathy with his art, constantly arousing the spectator’s imagination to seek the irreplaceable delight and satisfaction. ”
Hong Kong Museum of Art