Retrospective

Fan Ho

Hong Kong

www.fanhophotography.com

To begin to describe the photography of Fan Ho, we must first introduce the man. But grasping the essence of Fan Ho, the man can be as elusive as attempting to grasp water. At first glance, Ho is reserved and unassuming. However, what lies beneath this façade is a man full of emotion, romance, and compassion; what is truly the heart of an artist.
Fan Ho is a voyeur; he watches and waits. The result of his patience is the creation of compelling images of a time and place that no longer exist. But beyond the physical space, Ho captures the mood and the atmosphere, that which is visceral and timeless.
These early vintage photographs, developed and printed by Ho, are a document of his relentless search for the beauty which was hidden amongst the overcrowded chaos of everyday life in the Hong Kong of the 1950’s and early 1960’s. Through these images,one can trace the path of Fan Ho as an artist — from photographer to the vanguard of Asian film directors.

Biography

Fan Ho is a celebrated Chinese photographer, film director and actor. He has won over 280 awards from international exhibitions and competitions worldwide since 1956 for his photography. Born in Shanghai in 1937, he immigrated with his family to Hong Kong as a small child. He began photographing at a very young age with a Rolleiflex camera given to him by his father, and developed his images in the family bathtub.
Ho is a Fellow of the Photographic Society of America, the Royal Photographic Society and the Royal Society of Arts in England, and an Honorary Member of the Photographic Societies of Singapore, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy and Belgium.
He has written five books, one of them containing all his award-winning prints which are currently in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco. In 2012, Fan Ho was rated one of the Most Infuential Asian Photographers by Invisible Photographer Asia.