2014年12月14日 星期日

Newly published 
UMBRELLA SKETCHES

A first hand impression of the HK Umbrella Movement 2014


Introduction: A Collection of Raw Images
I was visited by an overseas couple on October 28, exactly one month after the day of tear gas, a Hong Kong scene that shocked the world. The man was my university friend. I accompanied them to the occupied zone in Admiralty. After that, I showed them my sketch book to let them have some idea about what had happened before their arrival. I didn't know how they felt at that time – it was just a few hours after their 16-hour long flight from New York. But I have to say, flipping through the pages of my sketch book, I myself felt the rawness of the images.
Up to that time, I had already had nearly one hundred sketches of the Occupy movement, about 70 in that sketch book. I started them on September 27, a day before the tear gas struck. On that day, I was invited (better said enlisted) by a group of cartoonists, the Comic Daemons, to make cartoons or sketches of people in a shopping district. Their intention was to arouse public awareness, through a day of street art, about the anticipated action of occupying Central, Hong Kong's central business district, to protest the government's deceitful political reform plan. The unannounced target day of the action was October 1, the National Day of the People's Republic of China (PRC), because, as known by all, Hong Kong's political reform was in fact hampered by the PRC regime.
I am not a cartoonist, but I took part in the Comic Daemons' exhibitions in support of their effort to promote democratic reforms in Hong Kong. I do brush-and-ink painting and woodcuts. Joining their cartoon exhibitions, I could only make some cartoon-like pieces for show. On the day of street art, I was enlisted to do a two-hour session together with other cartoonists, but I did hardly more than one and half. Unlike the others there, I was relatively slow, completing about a dozen sketches in my own session. All of them were given away on the spot, except two. One of them happened to be the sketch of the cartoonist Zunzi and a common friend of ours. In its raw state, the sketch was no more than a few pencil lines. I gave it a retouch with felt-tipped marker later in my studio.

It was the September 27 drawing session on the street that gave me the idea to make sketches for what would happen later on. In that evening, I brought along my sketch book to a rally outside the Government Headquarters in Admiralty. However, I found it was too dark and too crowded for me to work there with my sketch book. And, I must admit, the atmosphere was too tense. So, I only took a few photos that night.
On the next day, I went to the rally in Admiralty again. It was bright enough during daytime, but I could jot just a few pencil lines on several sheets and left everything unfinished. Later, when I was out on Harcourt Road among thousands of protesters, I found most of them were preparing for the possible actions of the police. I was too nervous to take my sketch book out again from my backpack. Soon, the first round of tear gas came. Then came the second and the third round. That night, after several rounds of tear gas, I went back to my studio at midnight to work from the photos. I had a sleepless night, working until noon the next day.
Things went better for me after the day of tear gas. I could visit the occupied zones and do sketches at ease. To save time, I tried to draw on the spot very brief outlines of what caught my attention with a pencil and took a photo for detail. The unfinished part was left to be done later. Within a week, I found my old sketch book, some 120 sheets, two thirds blank before the day of tear gas, almost completely full. I also found I had failed to catch up with what I saw even though I worked non-stop days and nights. I had so little sleep that I was totally exhausted. Thereafter, I resorted to record what I saw with my camera and do sketches at a slower pace.
This book is a collection of nearly all the sketches I did in a period of less than two months, from September 27 to the moment the police were about to clear the occupied zone in Mongkok. They are all raw images of what I had seen before and on the day of tear gas, and later on, in the three occupied zones in Admiralty (outside the Government Headquarters), Causeway Bay (Hennessy Road) and Mongkok (Nathan Road).
I have thought of turning some sketches into brush-and-ink paintings or woodcuts, but some friends encouraged me to put the raw images together to make a book. Knowing that financial support for this book project was essential, some of them even agreed to order in advance and in bulk. My heartfelt thanks to them.
I have also thought of doing a more complete book of sketches covering later dates, but friends strongly believed that I should not wait: “Do it now! And a supplement later.”
By the time I compiled this book, the Occupy movement was still on-going. When I was drafting this introduction, the police were trying, badly, to take control of Mongkok, clearing roads by charging crowds and making forceful arrests.
Of the 139 sketches printed in this volume, about half were done in an A4-size (21 cm x 29 cm) sketch book, the other half on A3-size (30 cm x 42 cm) water-colour paper. The media used were pencil and felt marker (sign pen). Colour was added later with colour pencil - and also crayon when I ran out of yellow (the iconic colour of the HK Umbrella Movement/Revolution).
Having worked as a journalist, I decided that I should make a narrative by telling the five Ws: what, when, where, how and why. Therefore, the sketches are dated by the day the scene was captured, with its location specified. The short captions, I hope, can be strung together and read as a sequential story.
So, here they are, the raw images of what I have seen over the past two months. I would like to dedicate this collection to the new generation of Hongkongers who are fighting for their future.
Fong So
November 28, 2014


2014年1月31日 星期五

馬年祝願  Lunar New Year Greetings 
各位:
馬年伊始,一卡賀歲。
此圖所喻,是我自己。祝願你們都比我好!
Hi Friends,
Just an e-card for the Lunar New Year - the Year of the Horse.
Please don't get me wrong. The image of this card is about me, not you.
Yes, I have worked reasonably hard over the year. The result/return is just so so, but I don't mind.
Things are always like that. I just try my best and hope that fate will be in my favour.
As for you all, I hope that you are doing much better.
Wishing you a prosperous year ahead!

2013年12月31日 星期二

Mad Proses - Some More 雜詩六首補誌

雜詩六首補誌



        月前因見港事蹇非,一時怒氣難紓,憤而寫詩,曾載於網誌(見10月28日貼文《忽然作詩?》)。際此2013與2014 交接,畧為點算,原來過去一年還另外拼湊了若干,茲抄錄如下,以作備忘。

解車公靈籤 (2013年2月)
        農曆新春,新界鄉事大老按例到沙田車公廟為港求籤。數年前,曾得下籤,籤文有「眼前鬼卒皆為妖」之句,證諸港事,論者多以為靈驗。孰料此回所得的車公靈籤,竟然也同樣掃興,籤文四句,曰:「駟馬高車出遠途,今朝赤腳返回廬。莫非不第人還井,亦似經營乏本歸。」車公此籤,又再成為話題。議論聲中,我亦步籤文原韻,以四句為靈籤作解,於互聯網上與友人分享。
       鬼妖喧囂據版圖,仰息西環畫葫蘆。但奉河蟹河犯井,卻恨人心不回歸。
       按:鬼妖、西環、河蟹、河犯井等詞語,各有出處或由來。

中秋夜有感 (配圖)
        因見明月當空,想到來年此時港人將會面對的局面。
        苒苒幾盈虛,澄澄變今古。來年清光照,對抗攔路虎
        按:首二句借用王昌齡五言古詩。

大學聘任起紛爭
        10月,香港大學宣佈新校長人選。來者並非華裔,聘自海外,此事在港大校內及校外俱引起紛爭。友輩論及其事,多認為不應排外。再看排外的言論,乃知難忍「排內」才是該等人士的心結。
        煌煌國子監,祭酒聘外人。黌宮烽煙起,排內始其因。

黑手 (11月,配圖)
       日前有打手文章刊於「喉舌」報章,宣稱香港的泛民議士為「賤骨頭」,須予打壓,且打得再狠也不見得天會塌下來。於是寫此四句,並取自己畫作局部,改成配圖。
        干預今已成常例,難容更多硬骨頭。咆哮咒天天未塌,黑手從此不須收。

路姆西之歌 (12月)
         香港三任特首俱屬欽點。現任者CY梁,備受民眾抗議,港人多稱之為「思歪」或「狼」。日前有抗議者別具心思,不是擲鞋,而是以布製狼型玩偶擲向梁某。布狼為瑞典宜家公司產品,名為Lufsig,卻有中譯叫「路姆西」。此內地譯名之粵音與粗口相諧,而「擲」又可作「掟」或「丟」,「丟」與「屌」諧音。路姆西經此公然一擲,即時成為反梁神獸,在港被搶購一空,布狼事件亦成為國際新聞。因此事與特府宣佈高度虛假的政改諮詢時間相近,乃綜合其事,濃縮成廿字,只供粵音誦讀。
        特府昏無日,政改道路迷。豺狼犯眾怒,掟佢路姆西。
        按:末句「掟」字作「丟」亦可。

習之傳承 (配圖)
        毛澤東1976年去世,雖然鄧小平在毛後曾作某程度的「非毛化」,但毛的幽靈至今仍在神州大地繞盪。毛生於12 月底。習近平上場之後,國內對毛的官方取態如何,於毛誕可見。
        毛鄧三傳習登峰,穩定唯效老祖宗。如今且做中國夢,經尚近平政近東。
        按:習之前曾大事宣講他的「中國夢」。

2013年10月30日 星期三

Website Revamped 網頁更新



Newsletter (Oct 30, 2013) /通訊 (2013年10月30日)

Website Revamped
We have been urged to revamp the website of Fong & Yeung Studio for quite a long time and we started to do it several months ago. Now that the work has been more than half complete. And we decided to launch it as early as possible to replace the old one.
        The revamped website is an online art gallery. You can see our exhibitions and view the images of all the artworks. You can also place orders for our publications and contact us for price-list. We sincerely hope that all visitors of this website will find it more informative and user-friendly.
       Yes, it's revamped, but not fully completed yet. Modification will continue.
       Please visit us at: www.fong-yeung.com
       Your valuable comments and suggestions will be most appreciated. Please contact us.
網頁更新
        很多朋友早已認為我們要更新楊方創作室的網頁。我們這次全面更新,前後用了好幾個月,現在大體上完成了基本框架和過半數的內容。為了讓新網頁盡早與訪覽者見面,我們決定現在就上載,取代舊有的版本。
        我們盡力將新網頁設計成網上藝廊。在這個網上藝廊,你可以看到我們的展覽,看到所有作品的圖像;你可以訂購我們的出版物,也可以聯絡我們查詢作品價目。我們希望新網頁對訪覽者能提供更多資訊和便利。
        誠然,網頁已經更新,但仍須增加內容及作出改進。
        請點擊閱覽:www.fong-yeung.com
        我們期待你的寶貴意見和建議,請聯絡我們。

2013年10月28日 星期一

忽然作詩?(Poetry, or Mad Proses?)


        從文字轉到圖像之後,已甚少為文,更沒想過寫詩。其實一向只是閑時偶爾讀點詩詞,讀舊體較多,但於聲韻格律卻所知幾近於零。近來因港事蹇非,怒氣難紓,不期然想到魯迅一首舊詩的其中一句:「怒向刀叢覓小詩」,於是拉雜拼湊了若干,現抄錄上載,至於是否符合格律或可有「打油」「抽水」的成份,讓各位看官評說算了。

其一、10月20日即事
        10月中,香港特府宣佈增發電視牌照,三選其二,廣泛認為應獲發牌的香港電視落選,全城嘩然,咸指決策違反事理,並斥特首連同其行政會議黑箱作業,相信背後必有政治因素。20日,逾十萬民眾上街抗議,支持香港電視員工進駐政府總部之廣場爭取公義。出於義憤,往政總撐場,及歸,憤而有作。
        牛豬轉替萬事非,復有豺狼只賣乖。虎狼在前魑魅後,遂教萬人再上街
        按:(1)1997,牛年,董[建華]上場。(2)2007,豬年,曾[蔭權於2005接替董,之後]連任。(3)狼,港人已有認識。(4)十萬上街,包圍政總,去年就有反國教事件[反對要在學青少年接受洗腦的所謂「國民教育」],如今又有電視牌照風波。因特府倒行逆施,此種場面肯定會愈來愈多。

其二、讀網友面書來料有解
        10月23日,瀏覽互聯網資訊,見Facebook網友傳來資料,乃知特府頭目放言,聲稱三選二非因政治,只是「順得哥情失嫂意」云云。聞此謅言,也謅編了四句。
        約規民意視若虛,傳媒電視豈等閑?非關哥情或嫂意,實緣北雪已南潛。
        按:社會輿論多認為特府的發牌決定有違政經常規,如此漠視民情亦屬悖理,故事由應是北雪南來。
其三、諷喻弊制三十三倀
        10月25日,立法會泛民主派議員支持以特權法案促使特府公開電視發牌准則,得票27。在畸型結構的立會內,建制派議員佔多數,有33票保駕,維護黑箱決策,反對泛民的動議。因見港運趨黑,再製黑詩一首。
        保皇保黨保黑箱,白黑是非已昭然。港運趨黑連國運,仰息黑朝只認權。
        按:所謂「建制派」,城中亦稱之為「保皇黨」。

        圖像:附載圖像原為木刻版畫Yea and Nay右半之局部。按友人所示,將之重複再重複,湊成33之數。
        (2013年10月28日)

2013年8月2日 星期五

漫畫刁民 The Comic Daemons

「漫畫刁民」是一個新近成立的組合,成員是一群本地的漫畫家/藝術家。

近日,各方都在談論「普選」、「佔領中環」等社會議題。面對重大社會議題,我們這批「漫畫刁民」因緣際會,決定今年八月在港九兩個場地舉行一個以普選為主題的漫畫展覽,名為「漫人迷普選」。

展場:(1) PubArt Gallery (港島中環贊善里7B地下); (2)活化廳(九龍油麻地上海街404號地下)

「漫畫刁民」現時有成員廿餘人,包括一木、白水、江記、李香蘭、阿平、馬龍、張萬有、智海、莉莉、黄照達、尊子、鍾偉強、Cuson、方蘇、Hark Yeung、Martin Lau、Vvn Ho、 黃國才、 黃志輝、Him Lo、Kit Man@社漫、小花@社漫、Tman@社漫....... 這次展覽會展出他們多種形式的作品。展覽同時歡迎公眾參與相關的活動及講座。(展期:2013年8月6–31日)

開幕酒會:
日期:2013年8月8日(星期四)
時間:下午 5時30分 ﹣ 8時30分
場地: PubArt Gallery (中環贊善里7B地下)
聯絡及查詢:請電郵comicdaemons@gmail.com,或透過面書專頁 www.facebook.com/ComicDaemons 與 Cathy Lee 小姐 聯絡。

The Comic Daemons is a group newly formed by a number of local comic writers/artists with a view of drawing people's attention to the developments of a major social issue in Hong Kong – namely, the movement of Occupying Central. The group has decided to stage an exhibition entitled “Universal Suffrage Now” at two venues on both sides of the harbour in August, 2013. This is first time more than 20 cartoonists/artists group together to work on a social issue. The two venues are:
 (1) PubArt Gallery (Ground Floor, 7B Chancery Lane, Central, Hong Kong);
 (2) Woofer Ten (Ground Floor, 404 Shanghai Street, Kowloon)

Members of the group include: APink, Brian Chan, Cheung Man Yau, Choi Hoi, Cuson, Emu, Flora@HKSocComic, Fong So, Hark Yeung, Him Lo, Justin Wong, Kacey Wong, Kit Man@HKSocComi, Kong Kee, Lily Lau, Malone, Martin Lau, Rainbow Leung, Richard Chung, Tman@HKSocComic, Vvn Ho, Wong Chi Fai, Zunzi....Their artworks in different forms will be showcased. The exhibition will be on from 6 August to 31 August.

Opening of the exhibition:
Date: 8 August 2013
Time: 5.30 – 8.30pm
Venue: PubArt Gallery (Ground Floor, 7B Chancery Lane, Central, Hong Kong)
Enquiries: Please contact Ms Cathy Lee at comicdaemons@gmail.com or www.facebook.com/ComicDaemons.

2012年12月23日 星期日

Festive Greetings

Festive Greetings  賀節迎年
I have been sending e-cards as festive greetings for some years, using the images from my artworks. Before preparing the e-card this year, I had several images ready. I must confess, most of them are “festively incorrect”. So finally I decided to go further away from “normal expectation” by selecting the most defiant and rebellious one - “The Shoe-throwers”.
Ponding how the image would be perceived, I added the following lines, in Chinese and English, to the e-card:-

Pardon me if I am being “festively incorrect”
for sending greetings with such an image.
But I really want to see the defiant shoe-throwers
of all countries aim their shoes
at the oppressive regimes.

在賀節迎年的時候發送這種圖像,
抱歉於節慶未免有欠正確。
不過,世上偏有某等民賊和暴虐政權仍在肆虐,
我們應樂見舉鞋奮起的人讓他們領受教訓。

The e-card was sent out a few days ago. It was almost immediately uploaded to Facebook by a friend who was among the first to receive my greetings. He did it half a day before I myself. As expected, over the past two days, I have received quite a number of friendly comments and remarks by emails and from the social networking site.
The e-card is posted here. What do you think about it? All comments welcome. Thanks.

(FYI, I have thought about using another image “The Three Men of Virtue”, instead of “The Shoe-throwers”. It's also posted here.)