June 8, 2015
Contemporary Australian art
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Artist Profile: Thomas C. Chung

Selected images from

Selected images from “Looking For Niceness…”, a solo exhibition at Buskerud Kunstsenter (Drammen, Norway).
Photography: Alessandra Langum

Thomas C. Chung is an Australian artist who works between Australia and Scandinavia. After graduating from Sydney’s College of Fine Arts in 2004, Thomas has had a number of international residencies across Finland, the United States, and Norway. Although he is trained in painting and drawing, Thomas’s work has evolved to include soft sculpture, photography, and installation based works that lend the mark of being hand-made and labour intensive. 
 
I first became familiar with Thomas’s work when he was installing for the North Sydney Art Prize in 2013 with his crocheted succulent and cacti series. Individual pieces varied in size, and shape, and plant type, and collectively seemed like succulent and cacti display at your local Bunnings. In total there were 88 individual knitted potted plants that were displayed in a circle on the floor of the Waverton Coal Loader‘s cottage. I was particularly impressed by Thomas’s ability to capture the plants details and his neat crochet technique. The final installation created an altogether striking body of work that captured the imagination and generated intrigue. Knowing a little about what his working practice entailed I was curious to learn more about the catalysts for his creative concepts and how he then developed his creative ideas. So I asked him a couple of questions:
 
CD: What inspires your practice?
TCC: This will sound a little simplified at first but a part of everything somehow makes their way into my practice. It’s one of those things – there’s simply too much to notice in life. No matter what it is, it’s still fascinating. Having said that though, I’m mainly drawn to subjects like children’s books, music, film, photography, travelling, landscapes, quiet places, cold spaces, honest talks, small words, unspoken narratives, quirky objects and interesting ideas.
CD: What artists do you look to for inspiration?
TCC: I love a lot of art – something which I didn’t realise about myself until recently. I found that a lot of people (artists in particular) had a very niche view of what they liked and in some ways that was very strange to me, considering how art was about being open to possibilities and finding something more within something so small.
I do have favourites of course. In high school it was Monet, Van Gogh, Christo & Brancusi. In University it was Bill Watterson, Mark Ryden, Yoshitomo Nara, Hayao Miyazaki and Miwa Yanagi. And then after that the list just grew exponentially through my travels, which included Olafur Eliasson, Frida Fjellman, Han Sungpil, Takashi Murakami, Ben Frost, Will Coles, Ramon Todo, Pip & Pop, Stina Wirsén, Oliver Jeffers, Venske & Spanle, Roman Signer, Jim Darbu, Piotr Nowak, Li Hongbo, Shang Chengxiang, Bi Rongrong, Brad Gray & Benedikt Partenheimer – amongst others.
 
CD: What developments have most surprised you in your working style?
TCC: I’m surprised at how much it changes, even though I have a set narrative to my artistic practice. Conceptually it’s like a giant storybook about seeing the world through the eyes of a child, where each solo exhibition carries on from one to the next. Having dealt with children’s dreams and anxieties in previous years – food, toys, paintings, drawings and art installations being the mediums which I have used –  as they grow older the world that changes before them will be told through my use of materials. Yet the techniques and ideas I discover along the way shift like as if it were a friendly & awkward earthquake. It keeps things interesting.
CD: How do you judge a ‘good’ or ‘successful’ work of art?
TCC: This one’s always hard to say, but I do get a sense of happiness if the work turns out well. I know that if it makes me smile and feel sad at the same time that I’m on the right track. But I wouldn’t be honest if I said that that was all that would be needed for it to be ‘successful’ – audiences that come to see the work play a big part. Some through participation of my art installations or just through evoking their deepest feelings. A reflection of the intention is important to me.
The most touching memory was of a time when I had a show in Sweden that made an elderly couple cry. It was really moving to see. Sometimes people forget that what artists create have a lot of soul behind it too, so it’s an experience to see that reflected in people who visit it.
CD: Do you consciously work themes into your work or do they develop organically as your work progresses? 
TCC: Absolutely – a central theme is essential to my work. Without it, I would be quite lost as an artist. I graduated in 2004 but it didn’t take until 2008 for me to figure out the things I had wanted to say in my art. I guess I was slow to mature in this way. But once I did have a grasp of the story, my vision was super clear and that allowed me to create with a very sharp focus.
It’s always interesting that, like most of life in general, no matter how well you plan something, there’s always something which will organically take part, tap you on the shoulder or grasp you by your feet and shake it all up. It’s the planning amongst all the surprises which make it worthwhile though (it’s tiring in a good and happy way).

Thomas C. Chung is currently working in Norway and recently exhibited a solo exhibition entitled “Looking for Niceness…”, at Buskerud Kunstsenter, Drammen, in Norway, that features in this blog post.

To see more examples of Thomas C. Chung’s works you can visit his website here

2 comments
  1. Jennifer Dalgleish said:

    Thought provoking answers to insightful questions. Thomas’ responses provide so many insights into the thought processes behind his art. Great read!

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  2. Great read CD! As Jennifer said it is a very interesting view into how Thomas creates his art.

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