Chong Yan Chuah
Chong Yan Chuah | 蔡崇彦
Sino-Malaysian artist, architect and designer Chong Yan Chuah (b. 1992, Selangor, Malaysia) (Working in between London & Kuala Lumpur) works primarily in the mediums of the digital image, game art, and installation art, his works positioned in the interstices between virtual reality and simulated space, fictive narratives and imagined bodies. – often dialoguing with one another through a mis-en-scène.
Coming from an architectural background, his main interest lies at the intersection between the physical environment in which we live in, and the fictional worlds that he creates, challenging the perception of space, reality and experience. Inspired by the idea of an escape, each world serves as an extension of real life, or an allegory of his emotional state – rather than a creation of a new reality. The otherworldly feelings, characters, and elements found in his digital works are results of his playful approach towards art-making – seeking to experiment around the concept of artist as explorer; one who discovers and reveals the unknown.
Chong Yan studied architecture at Newcastle University (ARB/RIBA Part I), and then at the Architectural Association (AA) in London (ARB/RIBA Part II), receiving the 2014 RIBA President’s Medals nomination and AA Scholarship. He has worked extensively with Make Architects in London on competition projects all over the world, contributing to the development of 3D images, cinematics and real-time experiences. Co-founding Inferstudio in 2017-18 alongside Nathan Su and Bethany Edgoose, he later directed Somnii, an art direction, digital imagination and research studio. Beyond studio work, he has participated in architecture conferences hosted by DATUM:KL and Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia (PAM), advocating for a broader perspective on worldbuilding that transcends traditional architectural frameworks.
As an artist, his works have been exhibited and collected internationally. He has exhibited at Royal Academy of Arts, Royal Institute of British Architects, Haus der Kulturen der Welt Berlin, NOVA.The Staatliches Bauhaus, NTU ADM Gallery Singapore, National Museum of Singapore, Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM), ArtScience Museum Singapore, National Art Gallery Malaysia, Maybank Gallery, Petronas Gallery and Ilham Gallery.
