内流

Placid is an artist duo composed of sculptor Chen Lok Yan and painter Louise Chow. Chen and Chow were born in 1989 in Hong Kong, and received their Masters of Architecture (MArch) from the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Their sculpture and paintings resonate with each other, jointly exploring the complexity of individual identity. 

Individuals possess characters that define their unique identities. These elements - attitude, style, thoughts and memories, are expressed as dents of imperfection on the initial surfaces of the sculptures. They are then filled and polished until they become smooth and imperceptible by touch. In conventional processes of model making, these polished prototypes shall receive the final coating, to meet the universal expectations in real life. Placid's sculptures are like frozen prototypes that preserve the characters of these placid beings as bespoke textures, capturing the moment before they receive the final coating that conceals the truth and imperfections inside. They are intentionally grey, the default color of digital modeling, and the most appropriate color to receive light and shadow. The most neutral and peaceful color, buries the deepest fluctuations.

Placid’ s paintings depict the same subjects as the sculptures, imagining their heads as empty interiors that become scenes of introspection. Looking out from the inside of the heads of the placid beings, one sees different scenery as from the outside. Shifts in viewpoint accentuate changes in perception and trigger emotions, serving as the inspirations of the paintings, and providing glimpses into the unique characters hidden under their gentle faces. The organic enclosures become the exhaustive realm for each painting, distorted as they stretch across the entire length of the picture frame. Vibrant and 
sometimes fluorescent colors inject life into the shades of grey throughout our paintings. The juxtapositions of fluidity and stillness, saturation and paleness, instill a suppressed atmosphere and give their paintings a calming presence.

In the year or 2023, Placid has held their first solo exhibition “the Witnesses” at Gallery Jo Yana in Marseille, France. They have also participated in group exhibitions and art fairs include “Nyctophilia”, Gallery Nowhy, Seoul, South Korea (2023); Art Amoy International Art Fair, Gallery Nowhy, Xiamen, China (2023); “Blue Blue Bl(ue)m”, IM Gallery, Guangzhou, China (2023); Moordn Art Fair, Guangzhou, China(2023); Beijing Art Fair, Beijing, China(2024); Ningbo Art Fair, Ningbo, China（2024）.