Pei-Yao Chang is a media artist, researcher and novice freediver based in London and Taiwan. Her work explores space(s) and embodied experiences, drawing from both the gravity of land and the weightlessness of freediving. Through drawing, lens-based media, and installation, she investigates the connections between human and non-human interactions.
Born: Taiwan
Now: London, United Kingdom
@peiyaoc_ | peiyaochang.com
INTERVIEW
Pei-Yao, how has studying in the UK influenced your artistic practice?
Studying in the UK was challenging, especially as it coincided with the pandemic, but I also considered it a privilege. The experience forced me to approach my work and studies differently, shifting from physical creation to more virtual methods. This change significantly impacted how I conceptualise and present my art, as well as how I engage with my audience.
This change made me question if digital tools had become part of my artistic language. Did they resonate with my work? Did they influence my confidence in the creative process? While the transition was unexpected, it wasn’t negative. It reflected the broader challenges of the time and became an integral part of my practice.
Additionally, being surrounded by talented artists, designers, and practitioners created a dynamic platform where I could explore and experiment with different methods and ideas. Conversations and critiques, whether in the studio or at symposiums, often opened up new perspectives and possibilities for my work, enriching my practice in ways I hadn’t anticipated.
Your work often explores the interaction between humans and the environment. What inspired you to investigate this theme?
I am fascinated by sensation, movement, and how perception allows me to explore embodied cognition. Mia Peery and Carmen L. Medina argue that every experience is considered embodied, with the body influencing both perception and experience. This concept, rooted in phenomenology, shapes my artistic practice as I explore the tension between seeing, touching, feeling, and responding through drawing, lens-based media, material exploration, and installation.
As a novice freediver practising in Taiwan, I’ve found the interaction between water and the mind-body to be a key influence on my creative process. Freediving offers a new sense of embodiment and weightlessness, immersing me in a space where time and space transform. My video One Breath (2021), reflecting my personal breath-hold record, pairs underwater and outer space scenes to explore humanity’s limits and unknown space exploration.
Additionally, artworks like Space Exploration (2021) and Temporality (2021) further investigate the intersection of space and time, offering insight into the transient nature of existence and our shifting experience of time.
How do you approach creating installations? What significance does the choice of space hold for you?
Space(s) is integral to my creative process and the evolution of my work. It influences how I conceptualize and develop installations, not just in terms of physical dimensions but through the relationships it fosters between the artwork, its surroundings, and its viewers.
Although I initially focused on virtual creation during the pandemic, I was drawn back to physical works like sculptures and installations as the pandemic eased in the UK. My inflatable sculpture Tree Guard (2021) exemplifies this shift, documenting interactions between humans, non-humans (such as dogs and wind), and the urban green space. Installed temporarily in a park in London, it explored how space itself shapes the meaning and experience of the moment.
Similarly, A Reconciliation (2021–2022) is an artistic research project that examines human and non-human relationships in a legal context. The installation includes legal case archives and artefacts, inviting audiences to navigate space, time, and legal procedures. The space in this project is essential—guiding the audience’s journey and creating a dialogue between the legal and emotional, particularly around Tree Preservation Orders in the UK.
Your recent projects focus on the interaction between consciousness, landscapes, and seascapes. Could you share more about your research process in this area?
My research process is non-linear, unfolding across time and space and deeply intertwined with my artistic practice. I engage with the interaction between consciousness, landscapes, and seascapes by immersing myself in specific environments, allowing these experiences to shape my work. In 2023, during a visit to Margate, UK, I had a profound encounter with the seascapes while waiting for a low tide to view Antony Gormley’s Another Time. This sublime moment—feeling awe and frustration in the face of vast natural forces—became the foundation for my ongoing project The Sublime, After All(2023-), exploring the emotional and philosophical responses seascapes evoke.
In 2024, during my residency in Keelung, Taiwan, surrounded by sea, port and mountains, I deepened my exploration of these themes. I created Shimmering in Your Sphere, a series of works reflecting my sensory experiences of the landscape and its mediation between consciousness and nature.
The exhibition Resonance, Unending(2024), which evolved from these experiences, explores the aesthetic concept of the Sublime, deconstructing the tension between individual and collective consciousness in relation to landscape and seascape.
You have participated in numerous exhibitions. Which ones do you consider the most significant for your professional growth?
Selecting the most significant exhibition is difficult, as each has been impactful. However, the duo exhibition Resonance, Unending at Space Moor Gallery (Keelung, Taiwan) and the group exhibition at Outhouse Gallery (London) both in 2024 were particularly important for my growth. Both provided valuable connections with local communities and artists, offering opportunities for field research and deeper engagement with the sites.
The duo exhibition Resonance, Unending at Space Moor Gallery explored the aesthetic concept of the Sublime, inviting a dialogue between two artists through different mediums. It examined the tension between individual consciousnesses and how we express shared experiences. My contributions included the Shimmering in Your Sphere series, Seascape III-V (Margate), and a one-minute video, Margate, 22FEB23, which offered an exploration of the oceanic experience.
At Outhouse Gallery, an experimental space in a former public toilet in Camberwell, London, my work Space Exploration No. 02 (2021) was included in the group exhibition Boundaries, curated by Siyan Zhang. The unconventional space provided a unique context for this thematic investigation.
You were recently an artist-in-residence at Space Moor Gallery. How did this residency influence your practice?
In April 2024, I participated in a one-month Artist-in-Residency at Space Moor Gallery (Zhengbin Harbour Museum of Art) in Keelung, Taiwan, which deeply influenced my practice. Immersed in the rhythms of the port, I explored its maritime history and natural environment.
During my time there, I worked with various mediums, including lens-based media, charcoal, and watercolor, creating Shimmering in Your Sphere, a series inspired by the ever-changing light and shadows on the sea’s surface at Zhengbin Fishing Port. I captured the shimmering waves at different times of day and under various weather conditions, from clear skies to rainy days. These waves, twinkling like stars, prompted reflections on time and space, as if they were traversing other realms.
The residency enhanced my exploration of the relationship between seascape and landscape, from the port to the mountains, deepening my understanding of space and time. Observing the shimmering water, both by day and under the stars, allowed me to explore new layers of perception, while symbolizing the unknown as I journeyed toward new horizons.
What advice would you give to emerging artists?
Embrace uncertainty and trust the process. The journey of creation isn’t always linear or clear—sometimes you need to allow space for failure and challenge.
It might feel uncomfortable or discouraging at times, but getting lost and questioning your path can actually serve as a guide. These moments can lead to breakthroughs, helping you discover new directions or deeper realizations about your work and yourself.