Luke Ching Chin Wai

Luke Ching Chin Wai (程展緯; born 1972) is a conceptual artist and labour activist from Hong Kong. His artistic practice twists the role of the artist and observer and has created works which, with a mix of humour, respond to the cultural and political collisions in Hong Kong. He studied at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and graduated with an MA in Fine Art in 1998. He has participated in exhibitions and residencies worldwide.

Artistic practice
Ching's works range from photography, sculpture and video to social intervention, often made as a spontaneous response to his surroundings. His artistic practices are based upon his belief in agency and responsibility of the artist for social purposes.

Since 2007 in his ongoing project undercover worker, he has worked in different low paid jobs in Hong Kong to experience their working environments and make first-hand observations of working conditions. He used his project to visualize problems hidden within Hong Kong and connect different situations and lead several campaigns to improve working conditions of low paid workers. As part of his 'labour campaigns', he has successfully improved working conditions for low paid workers, such as providing chairs for security guards and cashiers; provided a new design for public rubbish bins to make cleaner’s job easier; and urged the city’s Labour Department to improve health & safety standards related to prolonged standing. His work has launched collaborative activities to encourage employers make positive changes and raise awareness of worker’s welfare.

He also uses pinhole photography, installations and video works to document of the rapid changes to Hong Kong and other cities. In 2017 he turned a hotel room at the Titanic Hotel, Liverpool into a pinhole camera for the Look Liverpool International Photography Festival.

His works Pokfulam Village: View (Positive) (1999), Screensaver (2014), 1823: Complex Pile (2014), and Pixel (2014) are collected by M+.

Art residencies

 * 2020 Helsinki International Artist Programme
 * 2012 Breath, Chinese Arts Centre, UK
 * 2008 plAAy: Hide and Seek, Blackburn Museum, UK

Awards

 * 2019 shortlisted Visible Award for Undercover Worker Project
 * 2016 Hong Kong Arts Development Council Artist of the Year: Visual Arts
 * 2005 Photography Award Winner, Hong Kong Art Biennial Exhibition 2005, Hong Kong