9s Gallery is pleased to present the exhibition "Norris Yim - Beyond Names" from May 27, 2023 to June 4, 2023.
Who is Norris Yim 3-point summary!
💡Themes expressed.
True identity
Social oppression
Vulnerability in interpersonal relationships
💡Points for viewing the work
- Contrast between raised matiere and soft gradation
💡What kind of artist?
A young painter from Hong Kong whose paintings are a mixture of abstract and figurative works that express an identity to resist the loneliness caused by social oppression.
About Norris Yim
Norris Yim, from Hong Kong, is a painter famous for his abstract portraits that express the anonymity of modern people. After studying design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Yim turned to painting and has received high acclaim for his sophisticated visual depictions of contemporary human dystopia.
In the solo exhibition "Norris Yim - Beyond names," a new development of the series "Nameless," which has been ongoing since 2021, will be presented in Japan for the first time.
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Norris has witnessed the turbulence of Hong Kong society during the Umbrella Movement and demonstrations against the Hong Kong State Security Law. Perhaps it is because he continues to work in a place where the preservation of a democratic society is in jeopardy that he continues to have an earnest creative urge to capture the true love and complex inner workings of the human heart in the form of paintings.
Because of the sophistication of his visual images, Norris's work is often evaluated on a superficial level, but it is his ambivalent balance of maintaining a high level of abstraction while valuing a very raw sensibility that makes him so remarkable.
Artist Statement
With paint, he poetically expresses portraits of people's loneliness.
In order to affirm capitalism and hypocritical ways of life, people bury their original appearance in order to survive, new faces replace old ones, and even makeup becomes a new self-forgotten self with hypocrisy and fear of life. This gave rise to a series of abstract portraits that express the pathos and sadness of society.
Those abstract paintings represent my dark side and moods that form the basis of my work.
Painting is purely a means of self-expression, a process of transforming my observations of others and internalizing them as creative inspiration.
I maintain my own mental stability through the poetry of paint. Self-expression is tinged with solitude."
Nameless" is the result of social repression, but it also serves as a means to reflect on the world. It is a reflection on the world, as contemporary society faces numerous challenges, including the rapid development of AI, war, racism, and so on.
The philosophical significance of "Nameless" is that it reminds us of the increasingly fragile relationships between individuals, both in personal and social contexts. Despite our differences and similarities, our existence and non-existence, individuals should put aside their egos and delve into their essence to explore new levels of self-awareness.
And, importantly, it also depicts how we can be alienated from our surroundings and from each other. By exploring balance through the use of different pigments and maintaining an open and inclusive attitude toward materials and colors, "Nameless" reminds us of the interconnectedness of human society, expresses the idea that individuals are interdependent, and emphasizes the importance of respect and understanding for the presence of others."
About the solo exhibition "Beyond Names
While freely using a variety of colors, including colorful and monochrome, the paints heaped violently on the place where the face should be, seem like noise in a digital image.
In a capitalist society, we routinely wear hypocritical masks in order to survive. The original "face" remains hidden. Before we know it, the mask, which was supposed to be a tool to hide our face, has become the face itself, and like make-up, it makes us forget our original self.
Norris removes the mask and expresses emotions with fresh paint. The "Nameless" series, which evokes pity and even sadness, exposes the chronic disease of modern society.
We invite you to come and see Norris's work, which will shock you with its depiction of our own portraits, as if you have been struck by a falsehood.
Artist Profile
Norris Yim
Born in 1989 in Hong Kong.
In 2014, she graduated from the Environmental and Interior Design course at the Faculty of Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
After working as an interior designer for 3 years from 2015, she taught herself painting.
Started her career as an artist in 2019.
Solo Exhibition Overview
Norris Yim - Beyond Names
Dates: Saturday, May 27, 2023 - Sunday, June 4, 2023
Opening hours: 12:00 - 18:00 throughout the exhibition period *Last day: 17:00
Venue:9s Gallery by TRiCERA
The Wall 3F, 4-2-4 Nishiazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0031
Access: Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line Roppongi station 10 min. walk, Hiroo station 10 min. walk
10 minutes walk from Nogizaka station on Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line
Contact: 03-5422-8370
