Chief Change Officer - Hong Kong’s own May Yeung: Turning Life’s Darkest Moments into Art’s Brightest Magic

Episode Date: September 3, 2024

Our youngest guest is in the house today! I started this show in Hong Kong, and I run this show in Hong Kong. I’m originally from Hong Kong, talking to guests from every corner of the world. Yet, so far, I haven’t interviewed any guest from right here in Hong Kong. Today, that changes. I’m excited to bring a local guest to the studio—May Yeung, founder of the charity Art of My Family, a teaching artist, a cancer survivor, a mother to a 11-month-old cute boy. May has experienced many life changes over the years, and she’s determined to use the power of art, in her own way, to change lives and create an environmentally sustainable, mentally healthy, and socially inclusive society here in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is not just about business, finance, and money. May has chosen a different path to do well and do good. And as a side note: we’ve got our youngest guest ever—May’s 11-month-old son—joining us on the show, so don’t go away! Episode Breakdown: 3:17—From Wall Scribbles to Ceramics: A Childhood Steeped in Art “From the time I was around two years old, I would draw on walls before I could even write my name. By five, my father and I were creating ceramics together. At age 12, my fascination with dadaism and pop art gave me the conviction to become an artist.” "I met Professor Jeff Oppenheimer who gave a lecture on integrating art into daily life, and daily life into art, and the contents of this lecture really helped to form the framework and direction of my art to this day." 6:00—Where Art Meets Music: How Music Has Influenced Her Art Creation 8:41—From Crunching Numbers to Crafting Impact: How Finance Led May to Art and Social Change 11:20—Faith Over Fear: How Battling Cancer Transformed a Perfectionist into a Celebrator of Life’s Small Wins "I think the cancer experience really let me feel a greater sense of conviction to serve the underprivileged" 16:25—Art for Archer: How Motherhood and Heritage Shape Her Creations 18:09—Dim Sum and Chinese Checkers: Weaving Hong Kong’s Culture into Every Piece of Art 21:34—Memorable Art Pieces “What If” and “Blossom Love”: Sculpting Bridges Between Cultures and Endless Possibilities 23:19—From Corporate CSR to Creative Compassion: The Birth of Art of My Family 30:00—May’s Life Mission to Inspire the Next Generation: The Three C’s of Art Education and the Role of a Teaching Artist Connect with us: Host: Vince Chan | Guest: May Yeung Chief Change Officer: Make Change Ambitiously. A Modernist Community for Growth Progressives World's Number One Career Podcast Top 1: US, CA, MX, IE, HU, AT, CH, FI Top 10: GB, FR, SE, DE, TR, IT, ES Top 10: IN, JP, SG, AU  1.3 Million+ Streams 50+ Countries

Hi, everyone. Welcome to our show, Chief Change Officer community for change progressives in organizational and human transformation. I started this show in Hong Kong and I run the show in Hong Kong. I'm originally from Hong Kong, talking to guests from every corner of the world possible. Yet, so far, I haven't interviewed any guests from right here in Hong Kong. Today, that changes. I'm excited to bring a local guest to the studio. Mei Ye, founder of the charity Art of My Family. A teaching artist, a cancer survivor, a mother to a really cute boy, and the wife of another Vince,

who happens to be a good friend of mine. May has experienced many life changes over the years. She's determined to use the power of art in her own way to change lives and create an environmentally sustainable, mentally healthy, and socially inclusive society here in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is not just about business, finance, and money. May has chosen a different path to do well and to do good. And as a side note, we've got our youngest guest ever, May's 11-month-old son,

joining us on the show. So don't go away. Hi everyone, my name is Mei. I'm a teaching artist and while I'm a doctor, I'm also the founder of Art of My Family, a charity dedicated to organized community art events with sustainability elements. Mei is a teaching artist. What is teaching artist, you may wonder? And how did she develop her artistic journey? Before we do a deep dive, let us start with May's history. May, give us an overview of your history, your education, your life experiences, just to give us some perspective. Then we will explore different elements of your journey in the later part of our show. Sure. Growing up, I've always really enjoyed art more than anything else.

And much some kids prefer playing sports, art really came naturally to me. So from the time I was around two years old, I would draw on walls before I could even write my name. And art was one of the ways my parents and I bonded. So when I was three, my mother taught me how to sew origami. And by five years old, my father and I were creating ceramics together.

At age 12, my positive experiences with art from my childhood really gave me the conviction to become an artist, during which I had a fascination with data and pop art. And I eventually went to the University of Chicago to study arts. This is where I met Professor Jeff Oppenheimer, who gave a lecture on integrating art into daily life and daily life into art. And the contents of this lecture really helped form the framework and direction of my art to this day, and also were one of the major factors in my decision to become a sculptor specializing in pop art and large installations for puppet spaces.

You went to the University of Chicago to study visual art, along with another interest of yours, political science. I happen to know a lot of people from Hong Kong and China, including myself, who attempted the University of Chicago to study economics, business, mathematics, or physics. Yet, even at your young age, you purposely chose art as your major. Tell us more about the why. Why at that age you decided to pursue art as your major? Why you wanted to get serious about this field of study rather than just keeping it as a hobby or as an interest? For me, art is a way of self-expression as well as a way of communication with others. And I think the power of art is that even for words that cannot be expressed, it can be experienced through art.

And I think, as I mentioned earlier, Professor Jeff Overtimer, actually, as well as Professor Laura Lipsinski, both of them play a very important role in my artistic career. They really encouraged me to jump outside of the box and incorporate some of the daily life materials into my artwork. And that's also my philosophy as an artist too. You've mentioned to me before that music has had a significant influence on your journey as an artist. Can you share more about how music plays a role in your art world? Yeah, sure. Besides art, I also received a musical education from a very young age, receiving tutelage from Hong Kong conductor Mr. Jimmy Chan

and the late Mr. Dai Si Chong, who actually taught a lot of famous singers in Hong Kong, including Andy Lau and all those other singers. And I was also taught piano by Chinese pianist Mao Zedong. And very luckily became the distinguished winner of the Sueder Hong Kong Youth Piano Competition. So I actually used a lot of my traumatic experiences to create sculptures and directs dance and musical performances that amplified the significance of each other. And when I first returned to Hong Kong in 2015, I served as the visual arts director and showcased my sculpture, Kukun, using textiles at the residence of the Netherlands Council General to Hong Kong Macau, the Forge Permanental Performance. And even later until in 2018,

for the French May Art Festival, I directed the Pupnei Nekmekduta Interpretive Dance and Music Performance, where I fused Chinese and French musical instruments and facilitated collaboration between the artists. And so I'm very excited about the upcoming show, which is the Discovery Arts Grand Festival. I will present my artwork called Musical Compass. It is actually an artwork series of sculpted vases in the form of a musical rest in a garden of sprouting

daisies, and I will actually hand-painted them, and the artwork is really aimed to calm the mind and encouraging the viewers to actually withdraw themselves from the bustling city lives, to relax,ge to recharge and to reflect and the reason why i actually chose our musical rest is because i believe that the absence of sound in a musical score actually provides dynamics uh views tension and actually maintain the rhythm, even change the tempo of the key.

And I really hope that as music is everywhere, and I really want that through art and music, which are both universal language, to actually like music, sculpture, and painting. But you've also spent a good amount of time in the corporate world, including investment banking and working for a tech company in the CSR or ESG space. What were your thoughts back then about gaining this so-called standard commercial and business experience while still pursuing your artistic ambitions? My transition from finance to startup and then to art was a kind of gradual realization of my calling in life and what I really wanted to do through my career. And earlier you mentioned I worked in finance. I was an analyst at Goldman in the U.S. and back then I had the opportunity

to work on the CSR initiative, and the experience really impacted me. Specifically, the community team works, which provided relief efforts for victims of Hurricane Sandy. And so I actually, at that time, I helped organizing community art events and it became a really fond memory for me and inspired me to shift my career towards focusing and making a positive social impact. Coming back to Hong Kong, I then joined the founding team of Deliveroo Hong Kong Office as the social responsibility lead. And that's where I launched a food recovery program and providing free meals for the community.

And so seeing the potential for corporations to support their communities really solidified my desire to use my abilities to benefit those in need. And all these experiences and also with personal health challenges has actually led me back to my original passion for art as a pop art sculptor and also the founder of the charity Art of My Family, I now really dedicate my career to bring creative opportunities to underprivileged youth in Hong Kong, sticking to the values of ART art, which is affirmation, resilience, and thankfulness. So today I look back at my career transitions and I realized that the nature of my various roles, be it finance, be it startup, it was really my calling to do social work.

And the spirit of perseverance I gradually developed through these experiences ask about a significant aspect of your personal life. You shared other media interviews that you were diagnosed with cancer at a young age and battled the illness for a considerable time. Could you share how this experience transformed or impacted you? Did it make you a more empathetic or artistic person? Or perhaps it had a different effect? How does this health and personal experience shape your journey? I think our listeners would really appreciate hearing about the life lessons you've learned from this challenging time. Sure. So before my cancer, I was wrapped in my own cocoon.

And growing up, I was a brandlessly perfectionist. So I set very high standards for myself. I was very critical of myself, of everything from work to daily life. And back then, I micromanaged all the operations of my design company, Art & Love, and also my charity, Art of My Family. I think my fight with cancer really gave me a new perspective on life. I transformed into someone who really placed emphasis on faith. And when I say faith, I would say F really stands for having faith in myself. Instead of challenging what I do all the time, I actually embrace it and have confidence in myself. And A, it's feeling alive and celebrating small things in life.

It's not easy to be a sculptor. A lot of times things are being affected by the temperature. Things are affected by the humidity. But celebrate the small things in life and you'll become a happier artist. I, it's created impact on society by making a difference one step at a time. That's also my mission, no matter as a sculptor or as a committee artist.

And T, it's really touching lives and hearts by helping people around me. And so really happy to have set up Art of My Family to achieve that. And H, taking better care of my mental and physical health, as well as actually helping the mental wellness of people around me as well. So I think the CAMTA experience really give me,

let me feel a greater sense of conviction to serve the underprivileged, whether through events such as French May, Fel de Molde, Pandem, or Tropes, to Mother Nature Next Generation exhibition. A near-death experience gives you a new perspective on life. While that experience is full of suffering,

and we don't try to glorify it, it can also lead to personal growth. You came out of it as a better person, someone who embraces life more fully and finds greater happiness. Speaking of life, I know that in recent years, you started a new chapter. You got married to another Vince, who's also a friend of mine, from the University of Chicago. And you have a son, a new life that you are nurturing. How is modelhood treating you so far? How has this experience,

along with other major live events, impacted your perspective as an artist and in helping your communities? Just give me one moment. Archer is coming over soon. I would like to carry him as I'm answering this question, so please help me. Oh, he's sleepy. Okay.

Did you interrupt his afternoon baby sleep, beauty sleep? Actually he was awake before the call but then he fell asleep. Yes, like this. Hi! Yes, hi! I'm trying to grab a photo of the three of us. Let's see. Okay.

Okay. Cool. Hi! Yes. Who this person is because look at his eyebrows like checking me out. What is this? What's this person? What you look at his eyebrows like checking me out. What is this? What's this person? What am I trying to do?

So that's Artichon. And he just smiled. So back to our original question about a new chapter in your life, about a new life that you're nurturing, about motherhood. Speaking of motherhood, my journey actually really inspired a new purpose for my art creations. From my pregnancy to the birth of my son, Archer, that's when I realized that my work could be created with the goal of enriching the next generation, regardless of its amazing work or regardless art pieces and I think

the art and joy of creating is an expression of inter-generation care both for Archer and also for the other youths who needed the most in my community so one of the pieces actually Vince you saw in person a leap of faith was an art piece I created for a Mother Nature Next Generation exhibition with me trying to express the excitement and the joy of watching life grow into something wonderful perhaps something very small. The bamboo steamer used in League of Fates which is the largest handmade bamboo steamer ever made in Hong Kong is a piece of cultural heritage that represents all the things I really enjoyed growing up that I wish to pass on to the next generation. Actually, on a side note, why I decided to name him Chagall

is because I really hope that he could aspire to be like the artist Mark Chagall, who is basically a very innovative person who also went through a lot of challenges in life, but she still managed to get to become one of the most celebrated artists. What were some of the things you enjoyed growing up in Hong Kong? Can you share more about activities or experiences that were particularly meaningful to you during that time? Yeah, sure.

One of the motifs that I have in my artwork is definitely Hong Kong's culture. And when we talk about Hong Kong's culture, it's not only being the sailing boat and all those things, but it's really little things, little precious moments in daily life. So it can be dim sum, it can be Chinese checkers and all those things. And that's why I actually incorporated dim sum steamer and French made accessible Subami exhibition back in 2017, as well as Mother Nature and the Generation. I think there's some disintentable cultural heritage is something that is really worth talking about and actually people from all over the world to treasure.

And Chinese checkers and even ping pong balls are things that I really love playing as a little girl. And so that's something that I, it's really fun to actually see them shy in my artwork. I remember that I actually took a photo with that piece. And Vince, your husband, explained the significance of that dim sum container to me. Since Vince's family is in the restaurant business, he shared how dim sum plays a major role in Hong Kong's dining culture and overall culture. That really big dim sum container, especially made, as far as I know, was something you turn into a piece of art.

Yes, but it has always been great working with Dapchang Samge. They are the fifth generation of bamboo artisans in Hong Kong. And it's really fascinating to see them that they still handcraft bamboo steamers, which is not easy. Actually, a lot of the steamers these days are actually made with a mix of bamboo and metal. What they do for us,

working together with us for the exhibition makes it even more precious. And I always love to incorporate some fun food elements into my work. I think not only experience my other half, but also just experience by me growing up. It's always trying to preserve food. Like even, for example, a few years ago,

for Art of My Family's program, we had a two-year program related to marine conservation. So in 2020, we actually recycled over a few hundreds of seashells and turned it into artwork. And the children actually interviewed a fisherman, fifth Generation of Fishermen and Agredeen, to create artwork related to Chinese bone script culture, as well as actually exhibiting their work in Taikung. And then the next year, we worked on ideas related to the sea and seafood as well. We also believe in sustainable seafood. The kids actually drew on Gaffey's postcards, what we call etagami, and to express the importance of making things

sustainable. May, tell us a bit more about your artwork. Are there any particular pieces that stand out to you? Ones that you find especially memorable and would like to share with us? Yeah, sure. One of my most memorable art pieces I created is What If, which was one of my favorite art pieces I created while studying at the University of Chicago in 2012. And it's a piece that gave me the first Asian sculpture to debut my work at the Rockefeller Memorial Chapel and Chicago Union Station. In creating this piece, I actually want to encourage people

to take a moment and think outside the box and also appreciate life and its possibilities. I believe that art is like life has a lot of twists and turns that can change one's perspective and lead to new discoveries. If I have to pick one more art piece to talk about, it would have to be Blossom Love, which I created for Dutch Days in Hong Kong 2022, an event created together with the Netherlands Conflict General and Hong Kong Macau. This piece was actually inspired by the Netherlands state of the art, sustainable urban development and water management system. Wood is a medium that I

often use in my artwork, including this piece, and I want the audience to envision iconic Dutch tulips and houseboats, with the seaways representing the Dutch spirit and tackling many urban resilience issues. So I think this piece actually serves as a bridge between Hong Kong and the Netherlands and is a bridge that I hope will inspire more ideas sharing collaborations.

This seems like the perfect time to talk more about part of my family. May, you've mentioned this charity a few times during our interview. It's called Part of My Family, with my, M-Y, standing for your name, May Yeung. When I look at your website, you set various goals. Making art accessible, promoting social inclusion, fostering cultural exchange, strengthening mental wellness,

and championing environmental protection. These are all very important agendas. Looking back over the past six years, I'm curious, how would you assess your progress? Of course, we've reached a stage in life where we don't just judge our achievements based on report cards. And you've mentioned that you used to be a perfectionist and now have a different perspective. But if you have to evaluate your progress over the last six years. How would you rate yourself? And as a follow-up, looking forward, what else do you want to achieve? Are there areas where you feel you haven't done

enough or where you believe you can do a better job? So it's a two-part question. First, assessing your past progress. And second, looking ahead and learning from the past to improve in the future. Before answering your question, I actually want to give a little bit of a story behind why I set up Art of My Family in the first place. And then I'll talk a little bit more about what I plan to do and as well as how I assess myself. I actually, back then, as I mentioned earlier, I was serving as the CRSL lead at Deliveroo. And I was launching a food recovery program where we managed to save a substantial amount of food and beverages

and also provided thousands of meals for the community. recovery program where we managed to save a substantial amount of food and beverages and also provided thousands of meals for the community and that's when I realized my potential in supporting the community and I decided to lean towards my passion for the arts and recognize that many underprivileged children did not have a chance to learn art as I did. That's why I decided to set up Art of My Family in 2018. In terms of assessment, I would say that there's always world beyond world. And I just feel so blessed to be part of the Art of My Family. And also the family just continuing to grow. One of our key programs is actually Art to Youth Artist Scheme, which is basically striving to nurture

the next generation of creative and artistic talents. And for that program back then, we mainly partnered with the Hong Kong Design Institute. And now we actually expanded our program to, besides HKDI, we expanded to Metropolitan University, City University, and also CC Design. So it's very exciting to see how the family grow. And we definitely want to continue to expand that to other universities in Hong Kong.

But I think also one point in terms of what I really want to do, I think one point really worth mentioning is that many children and youth in Hong Kong these days actually go through emotional turmoil. And the World Economic Forum actually projected the emotional problems would be one of the biggest problems by 2030. And the cost of mental health conditions would actually skyrocket to $6 trillion globally by then. And so Art of My Family actually has launched programs like Hearts at Home program the past year. And we hope to further expand this program to help strengthening the mental wellness

of children with disabilities and also those that lack family care, including those in a memorial home. So our goal was actually to ultimately help those, help them to integrate into society and to walk out from the shadow of the family negligence. Besides Artsy Art Scheme and also Hearts and Colors Program, we actually architected good sculptures with unique characteristics in all 18 districts of Longhorn to show the importance of art and not only do to find a city, but also supporting the mental well-being.

Speaking of mental wellness or well-being, it's important to acknowledge that whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere in the world, aftermath of COVID, economic uncertainty, and other global challenges have created a lot, a lot of stress. These aren't just isolated events. They are interconnected factors that bring about significant changes. In my view, embracing change can be a growth opportunity, but also brings mental pressure and negativity, which can impact everyone's well-being. that wellness is crucial for everyone, from the elderly, who have their own challenges, to children,

who are the pillars of our future society. Often, the mental issues we face as adults can be traced back to childhood. Something that happened in the family or during those formative years shapes how we see the world, how we behave, our mindset,

and even our life and career choices. That's why I really admire your focus on intervening early in children's lives. The impact you're making goes beyond what can be measured financially. It's truly invaluable. For that, I would like to wrap up our interview with a question that touches on the many roles you play. You run a charity. You are a mother raising a child. You take care of your own health.

And you are a teaching artist with a wide range of interests. How do you balance all these different roles and responsibilities? And more importantly, what is your life mission now and going forward? The future is uncertain, the present is here, and the past is behind us. But when you set a goal for yourself, it's clear that you are fully committed and don't back out. So what would you say is your life mission? My life mission is to inspire the next generation

of artists and art educators. That's also why I decided to be a teaching artist because as a teaching artist, my goal is to leverage my experiences as a working professional but also provide a unique link between the creative process and also the art-based learning. And that's why I always try to develop specialized curriculum approaches to engage diverse groups from people with disabilities to consultations. And in particular, actually, my charity, Art of My Family's, a whole educational philosophy involved around the three Cs, co-design, co-create, and co-learn. So, for example, the exhibition you visited in July, we actually co-designed backdrops and

competition drawing outlines with university students. We co-created artwork with subdivided unit children, including the Seeds of Hope icon wall and co-learned with other peers at the design institute, Litchbox. So I think what's special about teaching artists is that in the classroom, the other emerging artists and I actually work alongside the students and we try to model the creative journey

and also demonstrate the importance of the student. And by sharing our real-world experiences, we learn street creds lessons, offering first-hand guidance on techniques for navigating the art world. So I really believe that a symbolic relationship between the teaching artist's practice and

also the environment causes creativity, dialogue, and growth for both me and my students. So the teaching artist's role is one of the provocation, inspiration, using my experience to diversify the creative path and also to achieve my mission

to inspire the next generation of artists and art educators. That's wonderful. May, I'm really looking forward to seeing more of your artwork at attending your exhibitions. As I mentioned, next time,

when your son picks up more words and expands his vocabulary, we'll have another interview. We'll do it entirely on video. We'll let him join in. That would be super awesome. He's a talkative baby already, so I'm sure he'll be a talkative kid.

Really appreciate it, May. Thank you so much. Thank you, Vince. Thank you so much for the opportunity. And Archie and I look forward to catching up with you soon again. Thank you so much for joining us today. If you like what you heard, don't forget, subscribe to our show, leave us top-rated reviews, check out our website, and follow me on social media. I'm Vince Chen, your ambitious human host.

Until next time, take care.