Yao Cong

(b. 1992 China) Currently lives and works nowhere…

Working across diverse mediums, including moving image, photography, performance, and installation, Yao Cong investigates the complexities and contradictions of contemporary existence. His artistic practice confronts the dual crises of ecology and identity, creating a compelling body of work that engages with these urgent challenges. 

His works depict human figures in states of vulnerability, isolation, and alienation, prompting contemplation on the manufacturing and deconstruction of the body and wilderness within the context of the Anthropocene. Additionally, he critically examines how collective influences shape individual mentality through emotions and moral frameworks in modern life. Through an empathetic and fluid artistic approach, Yao Cong aims to provoke introspection and cultivate meaningful dialogue about the intricate interplay between humanity, wildness, and society.

Yao Cong received his BA in Intermedia Art from China Academy of Art in 2014 and his MA from the Royal College of Art in 2017. Currently, as a recipient of the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme (HKPFS), he is pursuing his PhD at the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong.

Yao Cong’s works have been exhibited extensively. Recent exhibitions include: A Mountain of Closeness, Beiqiu Museum of Contemporary Art (Nanjing, China, 2023); ART SG-Film (Singapore, 2023); Jimei X Arles International Photo Festival (Xiamen, China, 2022); Chengdu International Photo festival (Chengdu, China, 2022); Yao Cong: Flies beyond the Clouds (Shanghai, China, 2021); Golden Flow – Beijing Contemporary Art Expo (Beijing, China, 2020); From/To: the Frontier of Chinese Art Education (San Francisco, USA, 2018); Holographia: 2018 International Art Festival, Times Art Museum (Beijing, China, 2018); VIDEONALE.16, Kunstmuseum Bonn (Bonn, Germany, 2017); Loop Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain, 2017); 14th Beijing Independent Film Festival (Beijing, China, 2017); 13th Athens Digital Arts Festival (Athens, Greece, 2017) among others.

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