Catherine Ko Chen
y: tell me more about your background :)
c: i was born in a suburb called san jose near san francisco, california. i grew up there and it was very boring (ahah). the only thing there that was interesting to me was the public library where i spent so much of my time. i think the first art form i really encountered was reading. it’s a very different kind of practice where you just immerse yourself into different worlds. i also went to a bunch of museums while growing up, so i kind of grew up around lots of arts and books.
y: do you have any books that have really influenced your life ?
c: yes lots of them ! i really like a genre that i described half jokingly as “self-aware women monologues”. rachel cusk, a british writer, is one of them. she writes long form writing that almost seems like a conversation and it’s quite easy to read. she notices the details of normal life that other people don’t really pay attention to while sharing some of her personal stories. i also love short fiction, such as lydia davis books.
y: when did you decide to take the path of a creative life?
c: i first thought about going to an art school but i didn’t. i’ve always been a bit scared of doing something i really love full-time and losing some of its appeal. i went to cornell university, upstate new york and i study a bunch of different things. it was kind of a business focus so marketing with a strategy concentration and as well english communication and information science. at the end, i think that it’s not too different for either my work as a researcher or my paintings, it’s all about noticing the patterns, and taking time to figure out what’s going on and where to go.
y: how did you commit to becoming an artist ?
c: i think i’ve always been making stuff. even in really small ways. in university, my old work was actually figure drawings. it was a lot of ink and magazine papers so it was always about layers. i used to take old urban outfitters and anthropology magazines, because they had very beautiful photos with light, and then i would just take a normal pen and draw faces on top of the magazine, and i would add a bit of acrylic, and use a gold pen so when it dries it would look like jewelry almost. a lot of the same themes always come back into my creations.
y: how did you come up with your unique way of doing layers?
c: so after these figure drawings that i did, i started moving into canvase. at the very beginning, i was still using pens and acrylic and still layering but it was very literal and also super colorful, genuinely different. i’ve started doing abstract stuff around 2015/2016. i’ve started painting on the floor of my room, which at the time was a tiny room in san Francisco. it was an evolution of all the things i used to do and i think it was around 2017/2018, that the paintings started to look like what they are looking now.
y: what do you enjoy the most during your creative process?
c: i think two things. i quite like the process of painting. i think the first layer that i put down is the most enjoyable for me because i don’t have to worry about how everything is going to look as it will be covered up by so many other things afterwards. and the other thing is finishing something. it’s very satisfying to know that this has gone through so many stages of evolution. i think humans are quite literal and like working with their hands. seeing something that you’ve created as a final material result is amazing. the feeling is so so different from the other things i do that i consider a job. a lot of the research that i’m doing is so abstract, it’s basically spending time talking to people and then figuring out themes and the end result is a presentation. so it’s very different form creating an object.
y: can you tell us a bit more about your work as a researcher ? how does it interfere with your artistic practice?
c: i think it’s not directly related but i think, as with anything else, you see things clearly when there is point of contrast. the research i actually do is about augmented reality so it’s kind of related in that it’s about how people share visual media in the way that they do today, it might be on instagram or elsewhere and all the current behavior that they do with their photos and videos and how to take that current behavior and apply it to new technologies. in a sense, it’s still about creativity.
y: where do you draw your inspiration from?
c: i draw inspiration from taking photos with a film camera. i love the fact that you cannot see what you’re taking as well as the waiting process to receive the pics. i’m also very inspired by my travels. i always find myself documenting lights when i go to new places. it could be a leaf in the window, sunsets or some sun going through a glass,… these are the elements i’m going back to before i start a painting. in terms of painters, i really respect mary weatherford. she does these giant large scale canvases, very colourful, and has these neon that are beautifully illuminating her paintings. her paintings are the only ones that makes me feel something when i’m in the same room. it kind of create a general sense of wonder. it’s kind of the same feeling that i get when i look at a landscape that makes me feel very small because all the surroundings are so large. i can’t really figure out what exactly it is, you’re just feeling a lot of emotions and you are not thinking of anything else.
y: would you consider becoming a full-time artist? is this question always in your mind?
c: yes all the time. i think this is the closest that i’ve kind of experimented with doing art full time (being at the artist residency casa balandra, mallorca). i think i would, but i also think timing is everything. i wanna be able to be in a great place to feel good about the art i’m creating and also to have a support system of other artists or people with whom i can speak about. at the end of the day, a lot of making of the art can be a solitary practice which i believe is good but i also think it’s important to talk about your art with other people.
y: why would you tell your five-years younger self?
c: keep on doing it. i think i would have been quite surprised if somebody would have told me that i would be in that position today. Up till a certain point, i’ve never considered making art like a serious practice, especially because it was not what i chose to study. i think there are a lot of people out there who change careers and have more than one interest. you don’t need to pick one thing. when i was younger, i was kind of struggling with the idea of picking only one thing and i’ve actually never fully picked one thing. there are so many things in the world that interest me. i think i would just say pursue what interests you, without fear. you cannot be too careful, otherwise there aren’t interesting things that can happen.
i remember the first time i called myself an artist, i was like holy shit, this is really frightening! it was in 2018, the year i had my first show in san francisco. i think before that i didn’t really consider being in a position to even call myself an artist and take painting seriously. so when that came about, it just felt right to me. and i think i just decided to do it one day and i’m still doing it and i hope to continue doing it.
y: how did your first show happen?
c: it was wild! i was living in inner Sunset, san francisco. i had just moved in and it was at the same time i started my other job as a researcher. i went to get some groceries and was walking by this gallery with a little sign written “here now” and i was like what is this? i then became friends with the two people running it and we worked together for lots of years. we have done three shows together. it kind of changed my life. i think that’s actually the best thing, when you’re making great work with people you trust and respect. Working together towards a shared goal in a setting-way where people have similar world views and visions procures the best feeling.
installation view, 536 davis street, san francisco, california
y: how would you define your purpose behind your artwork, if there is one?
c: i think just helping people to slow down and notice. i am always very excited to see my artworks in people’s homes because it’s such a nice feeling to live with a painting. one of my favorite pieces that i made in late 2018, called “it was nice with you” is now in marin, across the bridge of san francisco, and i was lucky to be able to visit it and it’s such a nice feeling. when you live with something, you get to spend so much time with it and notice many things and also let people have their own interpretation of you art. after you created a piece, you kind of need to let go of your original intentions, because everyone will have their own individual experience and all of those are valid too.
y: what’s next?
c: i think this experience here at casa balandra has been very insightful on many things. just seeing other people practices and how they think and talk about their work has been super inspiring. for the future, i’m really excited to approach painting with less fear. because the best things generally happen from accidents, when you are not too precious about the end results, or even not looking for an end result. i just wanna be true to whatever experience it is and not try to hide it. and i think my work reflects that. just being in tune with what’s going on inside me and letting the painting where it wants to go.
a conversation with artist + researcher catherine ko chen at the artist residency casa balandra, mallorca, march 2022
https://www.catherinekochen.com
