Red Hong Yi

About

Malaysian contemporary artist and architectural designer renowned around the world for her style of painting "without a paintbrush." Her signature style involves the use of everyday objects and materials to create her portraits and other art installations. Her work has been showcased at celebrated events and venues including the World Economic Forum, the Saatchi Gallery in London, and the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. In 2021, a piece she created out of 50,000 individual matchsticks was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine's "Climate is Everything" issue.

Before Fame

She earned a Bachelor of Planning and Design as well as a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Melbourne's Trinity College before relocating to China to work for the Australian architecture firm HASSELL. She left the architecture industry in 2013 to pursue her passion as a full-time artist, and in 2019, she was honored with her alma mater's inaugural Foundation Studies Alumna of the Year Award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the visual arts.

Trivia

She has been named by Esquire Magazine as one of the top 12 "Brillian Malaysians" and has received the publication's "Brilliant Artist Award." She was named on Perspective's coveted "40 Under 40" list as well as Australia Unlimited's list of "19 Future Chasers." In May 2020, she was also named on Tatler Hong Kong's list of "The Most Influential Voices in Asia."

Family Life

In 2018, she starred in an advertising campaign for JPMorgan Chase Bank that featured her artwork, "Tiger in Tea Leaves," which she created in honor of her father.

Associated With

In 2014, she was commissioned by actor and martial artist Jackie Chan to create a portrait of the star using 64,000 individual chopsticks for his 60th birthday. She has also created portraits of celebrated figures including Burmese politician Aung San Suu Kyi, sculptor Ai Weiwei, and English singer-songwriter Adele.