Working at the intersection of memory, identity and technology, Chi Kiu So, also known as Jack So, creates conceptually driven works that probe the complexities of personal and cultural existence. Rooted in an ongoing search for his true self, his practice moves fluidly across media, combining AI, historical artefacts and immersive installation to interrogate themes of belonging, power and erasure.
Awarded First Place at the Hong Kong Liberty Art Prize in 2023, So’s work has gained increasing international recognition. His recent piece Nursing Home was selected for the 199th Royal Scottish Academy Annual Exhibition in 2025, while his short animation Magic Tower has been screened at seven international film festivals.
Through a practice that is both deeply personal and politically resonant, So continues to explore the shifting terrain of identity in a post-colonial and digital age. His work is currently available through Zarin Gallery in Finland.
Are you self-taught, or did you undertake formal artistic training?
I am not purely self-taught, although my artistic voice has always felt like a deeply personal, self-directed quest rather than something imposed by tradition. I earned an MSc in Information Systems from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University between 2005 and 2007, which gave me a strong technical foundation in systems, data and digital processes that now inform my use of AI and generative tools.
In 2008 to 2009, I completed a Diploma in Art History at London Art College, where I immersed myself in the theoretical and historical frameworks of art. That formal training sharpened how I analyse symbols, power and cultural narratives, but the real ‘school’ for me has been life itself. Visiting my father-in-law in a nursing home, witnessing Hong Kong’s shifting identity and experimenting relentlessly in the studio have all shaped my practice. The diploma gave me language and context, while the self-directed element is where the searching and making collide.
How would you define your visual language or conceptual approach?
My visual language is a hybrid of conceptual precision and emotional rawness. I create layered, often multimedia works that fuse historical artefacts, autographs, found objects, AI-generated imagery, animation, sculpture and photography. Conceptually, everything centres on the search for true identity, whether personal, cultural or political.
I treat art as both a mirror and a scalpel, dissecting memory, power, belonging and erasure. Works such as HongKonger and the autograph-based pieces 1997 The Treaty of Irrelevance and Hong Kong Has Never Been a British Colony use official signatures and treaties as both material and metaphor for colonial residue and irrelevance.
In Nursing Home, AI reconstructs the sensory chaos of institutional care, including sounds, sights and emotions, transforming personal grief into an immersive installation. My approach is not decorative but interrogative. I want the viewer to feel the weight of what is remembered, what is silenced and what refuses to fade.
Can you describe your creative process from conception to completion?
It always begins with a visceral trigger, usually a personal memory or a political shift. For Nursing Home, it was years of walking the corridors of a local care facility to visit my father-in-law, hearing the beeps of machines, the shuffle of slippers and sensing the quiet dignity mixed with institutional loneliness.
That emotional residue stays with me until it demands form. I then research and gather raw material such as historical documents, autographs, photographs, sounds or data. Next comes the conceptual structure. I sketch, write notes and map how symbols might interact, such as red tape on a Jesus statue in Patriot or an expiry date carved into a theatre seat in The Expiry Date of an Expiry Date.
Technology then becomes a collaborator. My MSc background allows me to use AI to generate or reconstruct layers including visuals, soundscapes and animation. I iterate continuously through test prints, maquettes and digital renders until the work feels alive and unresolved enough to provoke thought. Completion is never tidy. It is the point at which the work feels true to the search for self, even if questions remain open.
Does narrative, symbolism or storytelling play a role within your work?
Narrative, symbolism and storytelling are central to everything I create. I do not make objects; I construct stories that question identity and power. Each autograph in my treaty works becomes a character in a broader narrative about colonial legacy.
The red tape wrapped around the Jesus statue in Patriot represents both censorship and the ways ideology binds faith and nation. Nursing Home tells a deeply personal story about ageing and care, while also reflecting a wider societal tendency to forget.
Even The Expiry Date of an Expiry Date, a donated theatre seat plate inscribed with its own future expiry, reflects the fragility and absurdity of legacy. My work operates through fragments, inviting the viewer to connect the personal and the political, and to recognise their own place within the narrative.
Which artists have most influenced you historically or contemporarily, and why?
I do not align myself with a single canon, but I am influenced by artists who treat identity, history and power as active materials. Historically, I am drawn to conceptual practices that use text, documents and found objects, as well as works that interrogate systems of authority.
The Hong Kong New Ink Movement also resonates with me, particularly its blending of Eastern tradition with Western modernity. This echoes in my own use of digital tools alongside cultural memory.
Contemporary influences include artists who use technology to explore identity, migration and surveillance in a post-colonial, post-digital context. My influences are less about style and more about approach, especially the willingness to use art as a tool for critical reflection.
What personal, cultural or environmental influences shape your practice?
Personal memory is central to my work, particularly time spent visiting my father-in-law in a nursing home, which led to Nursing Home. Culturally, I identify as a British Hong Konger. I was born and raised in Hong Kong and moved to Leeds in the UK two years ago.
The tension within that identity, shaped by the 1997 handover, the fight for autonomy and the experience of diaspora, runs through my work. HongKonger, which won the Hong Kong Liberty Art Prize in 2023 and appeared on a Times Square billboard, emerged from this context.
Environmentally, moving from Hong Kong’s dense, fast-paced environment to the quieter rhythm of Leeds has deepened my reflection. Distance has made the search for identity more focused and contemplative. Politics, family, migration and memory all form the foundation of my practice.
Where is your studio based, and how does the space inform your creativity?
My studio is based in Leeds in the UK. After more than twenty years in Hong Kong, relocating here changed both the physical and psychological nature of my practice.
The space itself is modest but functional, filled with screens, printers, sketchbooks, documents and unfinished works. It functions as a laboratory, archive and personal space. The slower pace of Leeds allows ideas to develop more fully, without the intensity of Hong Kong.
Being physically distant from my birthplace has become a source of creative energy. It sharpens my reflection on identity and belonging. Even the light and atmosphere through the studio windows serve as a reminder that home is both a place and an evolving narrative.
Do you have any rituals or rhythms that anchor your studio practice?
My practice is grounded in a consistent daily rhythm rather than fixed rituals. Each morning, I begin with coffee and time spent reflecting, either in a sketchbook or notes app. I revisit personal memories or current political developments, often relating to Hong Kong or broader questions of identity.
This functions as a form of meditation, without pressure to produce. I then move into making, whether working with AI prompts, scanning materials or building small models. Evenings are often dedicated to reviewing work, allowing it to respond back to me critically.
The rhythm remains flexible but consistent, centred on maintaining an ongoing dialogue between memory, technology and self.
What bodies of work or projects are you currently developing?
I am currently developing several interconnected bodies of work. The Nursing Home series continues to evolve, including a piece selected for the 199th Royal Scottish Academy Annual Exhibition in 2025. This work uses AI to reconstruct emotional and sensory aspects of institutional care, and I am expanding it into further installations and video-based works.
Alongside this, I am developing an ongoing series exploring identity and politics. This includes works such as Patriot, as well as new iterations of the autograph and treaty-based pieces examining colonial legacy.
I am also expanding my animation practice, building on Magic Tower, which screened at seven film festivals. These works are moving towards hybrid video and sculptural forms. Across all projects, I continue to explore how identity is shaped by politics, memory and digital technology.
Where can collectors encounter or acquire your work?
Collectors can view my work through Zarin Gallery in Helsinki, Finland, where several pieces are currently available. My website, jackso.art, serves as a central platform with information on works, exhibitions and contact details.
I am also represented on platforms such as Saatchi Art and Artsy, and my work is exhibited internationally, including at the Royal Scottish Academy, Leamington Spa Art Gallery, and exhibitions across Taipei, Japan, South Korea, Venice and Brazil.
For direct enquiries, commissions or acquisitions, I can be contacted via email at jackso@ieee.org. I welcome collectors interested in concept-driven work that combines historical context with contemporary technology.
