Aka Chio was born in Macau and graduated from Hong Kong Polytechnic University in 2008 with a design degree. She lives and works in Hong Kong and is a member of the Cantopop girl group Super Girls. Chio has collaborated with leading fashion brands including I.T, creating drawings for advertisements and merchandise. She also maintains a deep interest in social welfare and community art activities, and has collaborated with Green Power, the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups, and K for Kids Foundation. 

Her current art exhibition, HER, continues in that vein but finishes on January 8. Presented and organised by AC Arts Company and Jam Cast Management (HK) Ltd. together with ZZHK Gallery in Sheung Wan, it's a sale to benefit the Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres, and specifically, the Women's Relief and Support Fund.

Chio uses her art to explore her idea of womanhood and female identity in contemporary society. The surreal characters in these 20 illustrative drawings - all new - depict the diverse state, condition and role of women, reflecting Chio's concern with issues of women’s rights and welfare, such as trauma in marriage, financial and parenting stress, and the difficulty in seeking help. By using pen and ink on paper and focusing on the visual power of black and white, Chio draws attention to these vulnerable groups. The Cage, a work in which a woman is imprisoned in a golden cage and suffers feeling of entrapment, isolation and dejection, is typical. ISBN spoke with Aka Chio about her art and her feelings. 

ISBN: You’ve been supporting charitable, philanthropic female causes for some time. What tangible benefits can you share with us as a result of your actions so far?

AKA CHIO: So far, all the income from my art charity event has been donated to the "Women's Relief and Support Fund" of Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centre to help more women in need. I have talked to some social workers and knew from them that there could be lots of procedures involved when a woman tries to apply for a fund. The waiting time can be very long as well. But then some of them need urgent help, such as cases that involve severe domestic violence. Those women are in a very dangerous situation where their lives are in jeopardy, not to mention their mental health. So it’s important to save them from those situations as soon as possible. And that is what I wanted to do the most. Donations made solely from the paintings so far has been HK$200,000. And we are still trying to increase the number by selling more souvenirs. The exhibition is open until January 8. 

ISBN: What’s the best/worst aspect of showbusiness would you say?

AC: Just like your question states – there are best/worst aspects. The best is: If you are someone with an artistic mind who has always been passionate towards performing arts since being young, then the entertainment industry could be the place for you to express yourself and to make your life colourful. Show business is not only a business but also art of a sort. I wouldn't encourage young girls who are not particularly interested in arts but who think that the entertainment industry is cool and exciting, with the expectation of being famous overnight. This industry is all about hard work and lots of effort. Most days, you could be living an unstable life with no guarantee of any jobs at all. And if you are not very passionate about working in the industry or are not experienced in performing, you won’t be a good performer naturally. So even if you get a chance one day, you might just waste it. You have to be honest with yourself - can you really get a sense of satisfaction here? I will say you have to really love performing or you shouldn’t even try entering this field. Because you can only be happy with yourself if you love performing with your heart even in the worst-case scenario – you might not be achieving something great but you would still enjoy what you do simply because you genuinely love what you are doing.

ISBN: Art can be intimidating to judge for some people. How do you judge good art from bad art? 

AC: For me, to judge whether an art work is good or not, no matter it is a painting or a sculpture, I have to understand the meaning behind it first. Then, it’s about whether it can elicit any emotion. For me, I don’t “see” beauty in something but “feel” it.

ISBN: Where do you get your art inspiration? 

AC: I mainly get inspiration from reading the news and reflecting on it. And I have been to quite a lot of galleries this year, in Germany, Shanghai, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

ISBN: Which Hong Kong/Macau artist's work do you particularly like and follow?

AC: Paul Lung. 

ISBN: Can you explain more about the image showing the skeleton and the rhinoceros? What is the significance of that idea?

AC: This painting is about a white rhinoceros. I remember reading some news about how the white rhinoceros will soon be extinct. It's because the last male white rhino has refused to mate with any other females after his partner had died. The world could only watch the last male white rhino grow old slowly and eventually die alone, leading to the extinction of the whole species. As my theme is about women, and I really want to express fidelity in the painting, I was thinking, if only such fidelity and love exist in marriages nowadays in the society, many problems wouldn't even be problems anymore. I really want to express and preserve this spirit. As for the skeleton, though some people say a soul still exists after one dies, the only tangible thing left is the skeleton. So I want to draw the only thing that is left to the world after death, a skeleton, and let it embrace and hug the white rhino. And the spiral implies that the white rhino will become extinct. As I really admire the spirit of the white rhino, I also drew a helium balloon, implying that his spirit will remain and be transported into the sky. These are basically the different layers of meanings in the painting.

ISBN: How long did it take you to produce this series of 20 works?

AC: It took me about half a year. Actually, there were more than the 20 pieces originally. But I wasn’t satisfied with some of them, so I threw away around 8 of them and didn’t include those in the exhibition. So to be exact, if it doesn’t count the ones that are not included, it took me less than half a year. I had to finish the art works in quite a short period of time. Plus I was busy with work, so I had to work around the clock continuously on the pieces.

ISBN: What’s your favourite work in the exhibition and why?

AC: There are actually more than one favourite - the one you have just asked about – the one with the white rhino, is one of them. Also, I really like the one with two girls under a mushroom – it was about the power and the expression of motherly love.

ISBN: When did you first form an acquaintance with the HK Federation of Women’s Centers and what got you involved?

AC: Since the beginning of the year, I had wanted to put together a charity art exhibition. So I did some research online. The group I wanted to help the most is women. Then I saw the name of the HK Federation of Women’s Centers online. I noticed it’s a non-profit organisation that provides courses for women who want to learn some skills in order to make a living for themselves. So I contacted the organisation, as well as asking my company to contact them, making this exhibition possible in the end.

Visit: ZZHK Gallery, 3 Wa Lane, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong (zzhkgallery.com) #akaHERexhibition