on the bark and the needles of pine and fir trees,  

Chong Yan Chuah 蔡崇彦 تشونغ يان تشواه
b. 1992, Selangor, Malaysia
Working in between London & Kuala Lumpur

Sino-Malaysian artist, architect and designer Chong Yan Chuah works primarily in the mediums of the digital image, game art, and installation art, his works positioned in the interstices between virtual reality and simulated space, fictive narratives and imagined bodies. 

Chong Yan studied architecture at Newcastle University (ARB/RIBA Part I), and then at the Architectural Association (AA) in London (ARB/RIBA Part II), receiving the 2014 RIBA President’s Medals nomination and AA Scholarship. He has worked extensively with Make Architects in London on competition projects all over the world, contributing to the development of 3D images, cinematics and real-time experiences.  Co-founding Inferstudio in 2017-18 alongside Nathan Su and Bethany Edgoose, he later directed Somnii, an art direction, digital imagination and research studio. Beyond studio work, he has participated in architecture conferences hosted by DATUM:KL and Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia (PAM), advocating for a broader perspective on worldbuilding that transcends traditional architectural frameworks. As an artist, his works have been exhibited and collected internationally. He has exhibited at Royal Academy of Arts, Royal Institute of British Architects, NTU ADM Gallery Singapore, National Museum of Singapore, NOVA.The Staatliches BauhausAcademy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM), National Art Gallery Malaysia, and Ilham Gallery. His past work include, 27 Years of Lazarian Delights, FAC3D and Aequus.


“I tend to use numbers, dimensions to build my fictional world. Everything has a certain value and is quantifiable. That contributes to the gestures that I introduce in my universe: zooming, scaling, multiplying.” The iconography of my cosmos is likewise cryptic, with the prevalence of circles - in the form of round lights and metal studs - a private reference to new beginnings, while evidence of an idiosyncratic script is derived from a language that I created for my universe. “Bodies and terrain are as confrontational as they are ontologically slippery, corporeal entities populating a landscape that is as alien as its inhabitants.”

HYPERLINK
Somnii
Showreel
Inferstudio
Instagram
Vimeo


REPRESENTATION
Art
  • Reach Out.* 

Creative & Post Production


For all enquires please contact:
chongyanchuah@somnii.co

Video on this site is hosted via vimeo. On countries restriction, reach out with a request.


EXPLORATION

ARTS HELP. Navigating Dystopian Realities... 

L'OFFICIEL MY. Nov 2023 Issue. ARTISTIC Licence

MEN'S FOLIO MY. Oct 2023 Issue. The Metamorphosis Of Tomorrow

THE BROOKYLN RAIL. Worldbuilding

VOGUE.CZ. Může být umění generované umělou inteligencí kreativní?

VOGUE.SG. Is AI-generated art truly creative? Two artists in the field weigh in

NOWNESS. A visual manifestation of the multi-layered self in a digital universe

IT’S NICE THAT. Machine learning, visual arts, and storytelling in this existential investigation

AUGUSTMAN. Unveiling The Augustman Malaysia Men Of The Year 2022

AUGUSTMAN. On His Experience In Creating Atl-Aequus And The Five Phases

A conversation with Sheau. Aequus (from the Latin): Equal; Level, even, flat, horizontal; Calm

Julius Baer Next Generation Art Prize. (Inaugural) Contemporary perspectives of next-generation artists

The Foot Beneath the Flower. Beaneaath the Bloom a Foot, Louis Ho

MAYBANK FOUNDATION. Women Eco-Weavers. New Weave. [ The Poisoned Beast of Dead Looms ]

MAYBANK FOUNDATION. ALANGKAH. The Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM) in collaboration with the Maybank Foundation and National Art Gallery

Artandmarket. See You In the Virtual World!

Artandmarket. NFTs: The Good, The Bad, The Uncertain Future

THE SUN DAILY. Digital love affair

THE STAR. Future now: Malaysian artist imagines a world beyond our perceived reality

Pluralartmag. The Viral Future: Art vs. the Attention Economy

BFM: The Business Station. ARTIST, ARCHITECT… SPACE EXPLORER?


︎ CURRICULUM VITAE    PDF. available here

EDUCATION

    • 2015-17 / AA Dipl. Architectural Association School of Architecture. [ RIBA/ARB Part II ] London, UK. 
    • 2011-14 / BA ( Hons ) Architecture. [ RIBA/ARB Part I ] Newcastle University. Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, UK.

EMPLOYMENT

    • Current / Founder :: Somnii
    • 2017-18 / Partner :: Digital Creative. Make Architects, London, United Kingdom.
    • 2017-18 / Co-Founder :: Creative Director. Inferstudio, London, United Kingdom.
    • 2014-15 / Partner :: Architectural Assistant. Make Architects. London, United Kingdom.
    • 2013-13 / Design Assistant. ACID Avalon Collective Interior Design. Singapore.

HIGHLIGHTS

    • 2023 / Maybank Foundation Artist Fellowship Programme 2023. Chan + Hori Contemporary. 
    • 2022 / [ Augustman Award ] Men of the year ‘‘in recognition on the realm of arts’’
    • 2021 / [ Diamond Water ] Julius Baer Next Generation Art Prize. Finalist.
    • 2021 / [ 27 Years of Lazarian Delights ] ASM ArtScience Prize – Academy of Sciences Malaysia. Finalist.
    • 2017 / [ Deconstructing Somnia XYZ-G ] AA TS05 Technical Thesis High Pass.
    • 2017 / [ Aisha’s Asylum ] Blank Space Fairytales, Honourable Mention.
    • 2015 / Architectural Association School of Architecture Scholarship Award.
    • 2014 / [ Beauty in Grotesque ] The RIBA President’s Medals. Bronze Medal by Newcastle University. Nomination.
    • 2011 / Undergraduate Merit Scholarship Award. Newcastle University.

SELECTED EXHIBIT

    • 2024 / [ There will be Dr@g0ns in my Future Dreams ]  HARTA Gallery. Habib. Ampang, Malaysia.
    • 2023 / [ TOWKAY’S HORIZON  ] Immersio 2023. YayasanTM. Muzium Telekom, Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia.
    • 2023 / [ SWALLOW & SPIT ] “Constellation Aequus” A+ Works of Art. Sentul, Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia.
    • 2023 / [ OPEN HOUSE ] “BLOODY MEMORIES” HARTA Gallery. Habib. Ampang, Malaysia.
    • 2023 / [ LIFE PROFUSION ] “Singapore International Festival of the Arts” Singapore.
    • 2023 / [ Luxeverse 2023 ] The Upside Space. Colab Cloud by Ritika Kothari. Museum of The Future. Dubai, UAE.
    • 2023 / [ GENERATING/ITERATING ] TUS. Gillman Barracks. 7 Lock Road. Singapore.
    • 2022 / [ GENDER BENDER TIME TRAVELLER ] Kurfürstenstraße 151, 10785 Berlin, Germany.
    • 2022 / [ AEQUUS ] ILHAM Art Show 2022, Ilham Gallery. Malaysia.
    • 2022 / [ OUR “BUTTERFLY DREAMS” ] INFORMATION WANTS TO BE FREE?. NTU ADM Gallery. Singapore.
    • 2022 / [ FRAGMENTS OF SOMNIA XYZ-G ] NOT FOR SALE. Singapore Art Week 2022. Singapore.
    • 2021 / [ The Poisoned Beast of Dead Looms ] NEW WEAVE. Maybank Foundation. Artisan Gallery. Brisbane, Australia.
    • 2021 / [ Julius Baer Next Generation Art Prize ] Finalists. Virtual exhibition microsite.
    • 2021 / [ FAC3D. What if we kissed at the intersection between Art, Writing, and Technology? ] The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2021 / [ 27 Years of Lazarian Delights ] The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2021 / [ 27 Years of Lazarian Delights ] Alangkah Asm Artscience Virtual Exhibition. Maybank Foundation.
    • 2021 / [ The Poisoned Beast of Dead Looms ] NEW WEAVE. Chan + Hori Contemporary / The Unusual Network. Artisan Gallery, Brisbane, Australia.
    • 2021 / [ FAC3D. What if we kissed at the intersection between Art, Writing, and Technology? ] The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2021 / [ The Poisoned Beast of Dead Looms ] NEW WEAVE. Maybank Foundation. Chan + Hori Contemporary / The Unusual Network. National Museum of Singapore.
    • 2020 / [ The Foot Beneath the Flower: Camp. Kitsch. Art. Southeast Asia ] ADM Gallery, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
    • 2020 / [ Bodycathexis ] Wonderwall. The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2020 / [ Kyphosis ] The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2020 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] ZARCH gallery space. Singapore. SAW.
    • 2020 / [ 27 Years of Lazarian Delights ] The Backroom. The Zhongshan Building. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Bizarre Xmas Festival. Eko Cheras Mall. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Urbanscape. Immersio. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Parallel Screens. Hermes Artes Visuais. Sao Paulo, Brasil. 
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Parallel Screens. Nova. Berkaer Str.11. Weimar, Germany. 
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Parallel Screens.1805 Gallery. San Diego, California. USA.
    • 2019 / [ Fragments of Lazarian Delights ] Parallel Screens. Porto Vista Hotel. San Diego, California. USA.
    • 2019 / [ The Under Belly of Mr. Kupa ] 251st RA Summer Exhibition. Royal Academy of Arts. London, UK.
    • 2019 / [ Lion Head ] Noise Giffest 2019. Blk 7 Lock Road. Gillman Barracks. Singapore.
    • 2018 / [ Luyong-Poli ] 250th RA Summer Exhibition. Royal Academy of Arts. London, UK.
    • 2017 / [ 27 Years of Lazarian Delights ] Architectural Association Summer Exhibition. 36 Bedford Square, London, UK.
    • 2017 / [ Aisha’s Asylum ] Archdialy, 2017 Fairy Tales Competition. UK
    • 2017 / [ The Island of ‘Made-In’ ] 14th Kinofilm International Short Film Festival. Manchester, UK.
    • 2017 / [ The Island of ‘Made-In’ ] Frostbite International Film Festival, Finalist. Colorado Springs, Colorado, US.
    • 2016 / [ The Island of ‘Made-In’ ] Architectural Association Summer Exhibition. 36 Bedford Square, London, UK.
    • 2016 / [ Eflorescence ] SHOWstudio, QIC Global Real Estate. Fashion Film Award Submissions.
    • 2015 / [ Beauty in Grotesque ] The RIBA President’s Medals. United Kingdom & International tour.
    • 2015 / [ Beauty in Grotesque ] RIBA President’s Medal. The Practice Space, RIBA, 66 Portland Pl. London, UK.
    • 2014 / [ Beauty in Grotesque ] Architecture Degree Show. Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK.
    • 2014 / [ Beauty in Grotesque ] Clerkenwell Gallery, The Crypt on the Green. London, UK.