While studying in New York, Chou developed a fascination with the work of Henri Cartier-Bresson, inspired by his spontaneous photographs and complete immersion within his environment. Using elements of his classical photographic process, spontaneity and sketchbook style, Chou never crops or alters her images and relies heavily on the element of chance in her work. She has been described as the "Accidental Photographer", referring both to her unconventional path to becoming a photographer and her 'instant capture' approach to the subject matter.
In her colourful Reflections series, Chou delves into the ethereal qualities of water, captivated by the rippling effect of wind and ephemeral passages of light on its surface as exemplified in Orange, White and Green #1 (2013). A standing figure is playfully distorted in Red, Blue & Black #1 (2014), an image inescapably reminiscent of Gerhard Richter's hallmark 'blur' technique, while Chromatic Impression #1 and Chromatic Impression #2, (both 2013) depict paving stones awash with rainbow hues. In Paradox #1 (2013), Chou turns her lens to a garbage collection yard in Hong Kong, transforming a heap of discarded papers into a beguiling landscape.
Chou's second body of work Almost Black & White explores the near absence of colour. This series includes the five-panelled work, Passage de Mémoire (2013), in which silhouetted pedestrians are captured mid-motion. A chance encounter on a darkened Paris street is immortalised in Rain Man #1 (2012), a meditation on the mystery of an approaching stranger. In this series Chou again abstracts the unremarkable, offering a rhythmic depiction of a staircase in Spiral (2012) and an eerily framed corridor in Passage (2012). In these delicate arrangements of line and composition, the artist brings beauty to the mundane.
About the exhibition
Duration: 9 - 30 JAN 2015
Venue: Ben Brown Fine Arts
Courtesy of the artist and Ben Brown Fine Arts, for further information please visit www.benbrownfinearts.com.
