Su Hui-Yu (蘇匯宇) explores the nature of modern living – with his works having been exhibited everywhere from Taiwan to California and beyond. Born in Taipei in 1976, Su received a BA from National Taiwan Normal University in 1998, and then MFA from Taipei National University of the Arts in 2003. His fascination with media, technology and modern life was exhibited in even his very earliest of works – usually making use of video and film in his exhibitions.

Su’s first international foray was his exhibition in conjunction with Taiwanese artist Tsui Kuang-Yu at Sparwasser HQ in Berlin in 2006. “Wrong(ed) Attitudes” saw Su take on pop culture, MTV and fashion and its overpowering relationship to individual identity – recreating various scenes from pop culture and borrowing images from media and politics.

In 2017, Su’s work featured in the Museum of Contemporary Art exhibition “Asian LGBTQ Issues and Art Now: Spectrosynthesis” – the first exhibition by a major government institution to focus on LGBTQ+ issues in Asia. His work, “Nue Quan”, focuses on an erotic asphyxiation homicide that took place in Taiwan in 2001, which drew large media attention during a time when LGBTQ+ issues were rarely discussed by Taiwanese society.

Su Hui-yu has also transitioned from purely audio-visual art to outright filmmaking in the last couple of years. His 2017 short film “Super Taboo” challenged Taiwanese society’s attitudes towards pornography, representing release of the erotic imagination. The film was shown at the International Rotterdam Film Festival 2017, participating in the Tiger Competition for Short Films

Su’s 2018 short “The Glamorous Boys of Tang” turned to LGBTQ+ issues once more, featuring at the International Rotterdam Film Festival 2019 and the Queer East Asia Film Festival in 2020. Taking its name from the 1985 film to which it pays homage, Su re-imagined the blood-soaked orgy as a reflection of Taiwan’s various subcultures.

The Glamourous Boys of Tang (Credit: Su Hui-Yu)

Su’s latest film, “The Women’s Revenge” takes inspiration from the politically subversive sexploitation genre of Taiwan Black Movies and is itself set to feature at the International Rotterdam Film Festival 2021. His audio-visual exhibition “The White Waters” will feature at the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art in Manchester in October 2021. You can find out more about Su Hui-Yu’s work from his personal website - https://www.suhuiyu.com/.