Transforming Memories into Tangible Forms, NYC-based Visual Artist Jingyao Huang

Jingyao Huang (b. 1995, China) is a visual artist based in New York City. She received her BFA Photography and Video at the School of Visual Arts in 2019 and her MFA Fine Arts at the School of Visual Arts in 2023. Huang’s practice plays with the conventions and boundaries of photography, material, and the expansion of photography’s language into the white cube. Seeking to transform photography in today’s society by challenging its traditional practices and exploring new possibilities. Photographs are dismantled and reassembled through collages, sculptures, installations, and site-specific projects.

Huang’s works were exhibited nationally and internationally in numerous galleries including How are you doing? (2024) at TheBlanc Art Space, New York; Seeking Light (2024) at The Bridge Arts Foundation, Los Angeles; A Happy Beginning (2023) at Latitude Gallery, New York; Genesis: A New Generation of Chinese Artists (2023) at Chambers Fine Art, New York; 404: error (2023) at :iidrr Gallery, New York; Below Constructions (2023) at the Ki Smith Gallery, New York.

Thank you for joining us, Jingyao. Can you tell us how the journey has been so far? 

So far, my journey has been a mix of successes and challenges. After graduating from the academy, I spent a year in my Brooklyn studio working on the “Chaotic Data Fences, Baraka, and the Cityscape” series. I focused on advancing my research to materialize memory through multi-perspective film photography installations and sculptures. I managed to compile my findings into a notebook, organizing various moments of construction geometry and sources of inspiration. Sharing these concepts with curators and gallerists has been incredibly exciting, allowing me to exhibit the installations in various environments. Their insights and feedback have greatly helped to adapt the works to different spaces. 

The challenges always lie in balancing the size of installations with the available space. Space in New York is very limited, so I often find myself mentally balancing the dimensions of my work to get the best expression. Recently, I am preparing for a new journey to the Vermont Studio Center for a one-month residency, where I plan to explore some works.

What ideas are you exploring in your practice? Is there a specific topic or theme that you are interested in?

I have been exploring how to extend the language of photography into space. For me, photography is a tool for recording daily memories, capturing three-dimensional moments and making them easy to carry and share. Memory is a non-linear narrative, through various recollections, the memory becomes more vivid in our minds. My installation is a medium to process this evolution. Drawing inspiration from the history of photography, I note how early artists used camera obscura to transfer landscapes to paper for easier sharing. In today’s fast-paced information age, conclusions and impressions of events change quickly, making flat images difficult to express. By deconstructing and recombining photos into collages, sculptures, installations, and site-specific projects, I can place memories and thoughts in a space for iterative integration.

My work also explores the transition from figurative photography to abstract geometric, influenced by the evolution of ancient Chinese patterns. For example, Stone Age pottery initially featured realistic fish designs, which later evolved into simplified geometric patterns with diamonds and lines. This evolution of symbolic language inspired me to transform photographic images into geometric shapes.

In recent years, I have used acrylic as a material because of its transparency, like camera lenses. Acrylic, derived from plastic, is a material with significant reversals in our generation. First valued for convenience, it later faced rejection due to environmental concerns, and now, after continuous change, it has re-entered daily life. This transformation parallels my work’s theme of converting personal experiences and memories into tangible forms. In the “Echoes from…” series, I use leftover acrylic materials from various places to create sculptures. These materials, having their own stories before meeting me, now join a new chapter, recording my daily life and thoughts.

During the past few years, what is the most exciting project you’ve done or accomplished so far?

The most exciting project I’ve worked on lately is an installation “A swimming tower in the air” that I did with my friend Shadow. We’ve been working on this project since last year with common materials, with a focus on New York—a city both of us lived in for many years as immigrants and outsiders. Like the vision in the ancient Chinese poet Li Bai’s verse, “Under the moonlight, a flying mirror in the sky. Clouds form and bind the sea tower high” the city appears to float between reality and illusion. 

Naturally, our conversations focused on the surface and underlying layers of the city, which inspired me to create vertically mirrored structures in the work that symbolize its hidden and visible parts. I merged images of the Brooklyn Bridge, different areas I drive by on my way to the studio every day, and typical street scenes in Manhattan with UV-printed acrylic plastic. These two-dimensional pictures were turned into three-dimensional through three different chapters.

Projected shadows are an integral part of the installation, symbolizing the intangible essence that maintains the city’s allure. With different light sources arranged around the installation, viewers’ shadows inadvertently become part of the artwork as they move around it. This interaction mirrors our fascination and obsession with the city’s illusions, as we become captivated by an ethereal tower, unaware of its transient nature.

What does “community” mean to you? Has your local community inspired you as a creative?

For me, it is a place to share ideas, food and connect with more people. After graduating, I was lucky to have a small community with four other friends. We rented a studio together, played, and created together. Every half year, we held salons in our studio, inviting more people to join us, share food, visit studios, and enjoy cake. These positive interactions support us in facing life’s challenges.

Sometimes, I get stuck in my creative process, encountering many obstacles, but being part of a community helps me relax and gain positive energy, motivating me to overcome those negative energy. Without their support, my creativity and life wouldn’t be as balanced as they are today. During our final studio salon, although our work was diverse, I saw colors flowing between our pieces, constantly influencing each other.

Do you have any advice you want to share with others?

Keep an open mind to meet new things. Remember to eat three meals a day and exercise regularly.

text & photo courtesy of Jingyao Huang

• Website: https://www.jingyaohuang.com
• Instagram: @jingyao_huang