amy chang
june 5 - july 24, 2025
ccbc gallery 1386 cartwright st.
In recent years, I have been producing a few different bodies of work. Each group has a different theme, while the concepts are related to each other. I keep the focus point on the evolution of industry. The work started from ‘Industrial Organs,’ the first group of work about industry and engineering, and then ‘The New Industrial Revolution,’ ‘Artificial Intelligence,’ ‘Mars colonization,’ and ‘Rebirth.’
To move on from the last exhibition, ‘Mars Colonization,’ ‘Rebirth’ is about a group of creatures and plants that settle down on another planet and start a new life there. For the purpose of adapting into the harsh environment, all creatures and plants have been equipped very well in themselves. They are all different: some creatures have been hybridized with AI technology and others are covered with strange outfits.
AI technology can be seen everywhere in our daily life. The common existence of moving gears directed me into this new body of work. I made the creatures, transformed and with industrial parts. Some of them have mixed media attached to copy the high-tech model. I used under-glaze to hand paint on the AI creatures or I made strange weapons held in the creatures’ hands. This is the way I make the identity different for each piece. The hand painted patterns on the surface are symbols that carry different meanings. For example, the grasshopper with a pattern of green stripes imitates the grass from where they originally come.
The pieces combine different pottery skills: hand building, mold casting and pinch. Though I have made living creatures, the images are not ones we recognize from our memory. I always leave some clues on the pieces for the viewer to question in their imaginations, creating an immediate interesting moment when the audience first encounters the pieces.
The theme of ‘Rebirth’ raises the question of what is the meaning of rebirth? Is the creature an old one returning or a new one arising?
artist bio
Born and raised in Taiwan, Amy Li Chuan Chang obtained her bachelor of business degree from Tank Kung University Taipei, Taiwan before she moved to Canada. During this time, she worked in a cloisonné company and she really enjoyed the beautiful handmade pieces. This was her first contact with art. Occasionally she visited a ceramic exhibition and was deeply attracted by those works. Before long, she started to take pottery classes in a clay studio .
After Amy settled down in Vancouver, she started her ceramics practice again. To go further, Amy completed the Studio Art Diploma in Capilano university in 2003. After that, she received a BFA from Emily Carr Art & Design University in 2007. From there Amy began developing her own ceramic language.
In recent years, Amy has exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in Vancouver area and overseas. Her works have been selected into national and international competitions, such as her 2021 solo exhibition at Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taipei, Taiwan; the 2024 & 2019 Bronze award in the world teapot competition, Yixin, China; and the 2018 Bronze award in the Salt Spring Island Ceramic competition, BC, Canada.
