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Oscar yi Hou

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Oscar yi Hou (born 1998) is a New York–based British-Chinese painter and poet.[1] He is best known for his maximalist, calligraphy-inspired portraits that engage with “subterranean semiotics” of immigrant communities, including Asian Americans.[2] His oil-on-canvas works feature pop cultural, subcultural, and art historical references, like Dragon Ball Z or Martin Wong, family and friends, and distinctive symbols and text.

Biography[edit]

yi Hou was born in Liverpool, England. His parents left Guangdong, China[3] in the early 1990s for England. There, they ran a Cantonese restaurant for many years, where he worked.[4][5] His burgeoning interest in drawing started with Pokémon fan art and browsing the pages of DeviantArt and Tumblr.

In 2021, yi Hou graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor's degree in Visual Arts.[6][7] That year, he presented a solo show with James Fuentes gallery.[8] In a favorable review, the New York Times described the artist as "a painter who has many things to say, and is able to say them all at once."[9]

In 2023, he presented a solo show at the Brooklyn Museum, titled "East of sun, west of moon."[10] At age 24, he was reported to be one of the youngest artists to have a solo show at a major New York museum.[2][4][11] He was named in Forbes 30 Under 30.[12]

Work[edit]

yi Hou's works has been described as “deeply citational, resulting in densely layered compositions that brim with imagery,"[13] featuring visual displays of private lexicons of hieroglyphs, such as cranes, dragons, leather chaps and the yin and yang symbol, the American flag, glory holes, Western cowboy hats and spurs, all as a stand-in for the artist and his immediate world. “There are a lot of ethical considerations when you present someone else,” the artist is quoted saying for Document Journal, “When you represent yourself, you can make up a figure and do whatever you want with it."[14]

His practice examines Americanism, imperialism, racial histories, gender, queer kinship, language, and portraiture.[1][5][6][13][15]

In one of his essays, the artist coins the term “representationalism” to describe a sort of "political recuperation and defanging of identity politics by liberal multiculturalism to serve capitalist ends. It’s corporate DEI. It’s an ideology which seeks to represent, and often deputize, minoritarian subjects within larger structures of power."[6][15]

The artist is inspired by the filmmaker Trinh T. Minh Ha, Martinican philosopher Édouard Glissant, Gayatri Spivak, and Achille Mbembe as well as painters Alice Neel and Martin Wong.[5][15]

He frequently collaborates with fellow artists, writers, and poets. He co-curated 2021's QUEER OUT T/HERE, a group show with nine artists, including Amanda Ba, Tseng Kwong Chi, Louis Fratino, Dominique Fung, and Lily Wong, who “examine the condition of ‘otherness’ across overlapping lines of queerness and/or East Asian identity," as well as published a book, "Oscar yi Hou," of poems, stories, and essays by the artist, Simon Wu, Xin Wang, and Kate Wong.[16] He has exhibited internationally at venues like the Brooklyn Museum, James Fuentes Gallery, the New-York Historical Society, the Asia Society, Grinnell College Museum of Art, Carl Freedman Gallery, Kohn Gallery, and K11 Musea.

Public collections[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "At 25, Artist Oscar yi Hou Has Already Had a Solo Museum Show—And Written a Memoir". www.culturedmag.com. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  2. ^ a b Harrelson, Sarah (2023-11-28). "6 Artists to Watch during Miami Art Week according to Sarah Harrelson". Artsy. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  3. ^ "Caught between Asia and the West, Oscar yi Hou's art combines both worlds". South China Morning Post. 2022-06-07. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  4. ^ a b Loos, Ted (2022-10-22). "Oscar yi Hou's Paintings Lend New Frames to Queer, Asian Identity". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  5. ^ a b c Wu, Simon (2022-11-15). "Oscar yi Hou's Striking Portraits Subvert Myths of Masculinity and Belonging". Artsy. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  6. ^ a b c Woolbright, Andrew Paul (2023-07-04). "Oscar yi Hou with Andrew Woolbright". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  7. ^ Fisher, Catherine (September 15, 2021). "Undergraduate Alumnus Oscar yi Hou (CC '21) in Solo Show 'A sky-licker relation'". Columbia University School of the Arts.
  8. ^ Loos, Ted (2022-10-22). "Oscar yi Hou's Paintings Lend New Frames to Queer, Asian Identity". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  9. ^ "Art Gallery Shows to See Right Now". The New York Times. 2021-09-10. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  10. ^ "Oscar yi Hou: East of sun, west of moon". www.brooklynmuseum.org. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  11. ^ "Oscar yi Hou". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  12. ^ Rabb, Maxwell (2023-11-28). "Oscar yi Hou, Gisela McDaniel, and Kapp Kapp named in Forbes's 30 Under 30". Artsy. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  13. ^ a b Voon, Claire (2022-03-14). "Oscar yi Hou's Layered Portraits of Queer Kinship Evade Easy Interpretation". Artsy. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  14. ^ Bulnes, Madison (2022-11-18). "Oscar yi Hou makes art from the spaces in between". Document Journal. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
  15. ^ a b c "Mlle. Chris à central park 103rd, en automne | The Now Evening Auction | 2023". Sotheby's. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
  16. ^ "MSN". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
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