Nicholas Tay

  • Born in 1977, Nicholas Tay is a multi-disciplinary artist of Singaporean-Chinese descent whose works draw from his personal Chinese immigrant experiences as subject matter. Nicholas works primarily with drawing, painting, and photography to explore themes of identity, belonging and our relationship with memory. 


    Nicholas received his formal art training from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. He currently splits his time between Hong Kong, and working in his studio in Vancouver, British Columbia, located on the unceded and traditional territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil Waututh) and skwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) peoples. His works have been exhibited in Vancouver, Seoul, Bangkok and Rome

"My works are portraits of our longing and discontent. Drawing, painting and photography are merged together to render and frame the human figure as the central metaphor in scenes depicting our conscious and subconscious relationship with memory. Specifically, the selective mental filters of how we choose to remember our formative experiences. Often drawing from my personal Chinese immigrant experience in Canada, much of my work is an autobiographical exploration of what it means to be foreign in one's home — to question the balance of appreciation and resentment, to explore the constant contortions for relevance, and the dilution of cultural identity in order to fit in. My intention for sharing this personal experience is to open a doorway into our shared human story and build a bridge of joint empathy."

-Nicholas