Ming Fay
Encyclopedia
Ming Fay is a Shanghai
-born and New York
-based sculptor and professor. His work focuses on the concept of the garden as a symbol of utopia
and the relationship between man and nature. Drawing upon an extensive knowledge of plants both Eastern and Western, real and mythical, Fay creates his own calligraphic floating forest of reeds, branches and surreal species.
in 1943 and raised in Hong Kong
. His mother was an artist, and his father worked in the then-burgeoning Hong Kong movie industry as an art director
. Both were students of Shanghai-based sculptor Zhang Chongren
, who had studied Western sculpture in Europe.
Ming came to the United States in 1961 to study at the Columbus College of Art and Design
and later at the Kansas City Institute of Art. Subsequently, Fay earned a graduate degree in sculpture
at the University of California, Santa Barbara
in 1975. He currently teaches sculpture at William Paterson University
in Wayne, New Jersey.
at Phillip Morris (New York, NY), the National Academy Museum (New York, NY), Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai
, Łódź Biennale at The International Artists’ Museum (Łódź, Poland
), Butters Gallery (Portland, Oregon
), Ramapo Gallery (Ramapo
, New Jersey
) and the Hong Kong Museum of Art
.
Fay has also completed numerous public art commissions including a suspended glass and steel sculpture for a residential lobby in Philadelphia, a large scale tree sculpture in Puerto Rico
, sculptural benches for the New York City Staten Island Ferry Terminal
and glass mosaic murals for the Delancey Street – Essex Street New York City subway station. He is also the recipient of the 2007 NYFA fellowship
in Sculpture.
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
-born and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
-based sculptor and professor. His work focuses on the concept of the garden as a symbol of utopia
Utopia
Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...
and the relationship between man and nature. Drawing upon an extensive knowledge of plants both Eastern and Western, real and mythical, Fay creates his own calligraphic floating forest of reeds, branches and surreal species.
Background
Ming Fay was born in ShanghaiShanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
in 1943 and raised in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. His mother was an artist, and his father worked in the then-burgeoning Hong Kong movie industry as an art director
Art director
The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design.The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games....
. Both were students of Shanghai-based sculptor Zhang Chongren
Zhang Chongren
Zhang Chongren , was a Chinese artist and sculptor best remembered in Europe as the friend of Hergé, the Belgian comics writer and artist and creator of The Adventures of Tintin. The two met when Zhang was an art student in Brussels.-Early life:...
, who had studied Western sculpture in Europe.
Ming came to the United States in 1961 to study at the Columbus College of Art and Design
Columbus College of Art and Design
Columbus College of Art & Design is a private college of art and design located in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Originally founded in 1879 as The Columbus Art School, CCAD is one of the oldest operating art schools in the United States...
and later at the Kansas City Institute of Art. Subsequently, Fay earned a graduate degree in sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
at the University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
in 1975. He currently teaches sculpture at William Paterson University
William Paterson University
William Paterson University is a comprehensive public institution located in Wayne, New Jersey serving nearly 11,000 undergraduate and graduate students through five colleges: , , , , and ....
in Wayne, New Jersey.
Biography
Ming Fay has exhibited internationally in numerous solo exhibitions, and his work has frequented important group shows throughout the world. Exhibitions have taken place at the Whitney Museum of American ArtWhitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
at Phillip Morris (New York, NY), the National Academy Museum (New York, NY), Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, Łódź Biennale at The International Artists’ Museum (Łódź, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
), Butters Gallery (Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
), Ramapo Gallery (Ramapo
Ramapo
Ramapo is the name of several places and institutions in northern New Jersey and the adjoining area of Rockland County in southeastern New York State.-In New Jersey:...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
) and the Hong Kong Museum of Art
Hong Kong Museum of Art
The Hong Kong Museum of Art is the main art museum of Hong Kong. The museum was established as the City Hall Museum and Art Gallery in the City Hall in Central by the Urban Council in 1962. In 1991, it was moved to the present premises at 10 Salisbury Road, near the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and...
.
Fay has also completed numerous public art commissions including a suspended glass and steel sculpture for a residential lobby in Philadelphia, a large scale tree sculpture in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, sculptural benches for the New York City Staten Island Ferry Terminal
Staten Island Ferry
The Staten Island Ferry is a passenger ferry service operated by the New York City Department of Transportation that runs between the boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island.-Overview:...
and glass mosaic murals for the Delancey Street – Essex Street New York City subway station. He is also the recipient of the 2007 NYFA fellowship
NYFA
The acronym NYFA can refer to:* New York Film Academy* New York Foundation for the Arts...
in Sculpture.