London-based artist, activist and Chinese drag king Whiskey Chow’s practice defies conventional boundaries, spanning performance, moving image, digital art, sculpture and experimental print to challenge established narratives around gender, masculinity and Asian identity. Through their multifaceted approach as an artivist – an artist with the heart of an activist – Chow creates work that interrogates systemic inequalities while carving out spaces for marginalised voices, particularly within the Chinese and other Asian diaspora communities and beyond.
Drawing from their early experiences in feminist and LGBTQ activism in China, including organising groundbreaking events like For Vaginas’ Sake (將陰道獨白到底, 2013) and the first Chinese LGBTQ music festival, Lover Comrades Concert (愛人同志音樂會), Chow’s work offers a distinctive non-western perspective within western contexts. Their work you must everywhere wander (你必顧盼, 2021) in the exhibition On Queer Ground at Yorkshire Sculpture Park and performances at renowned institutions like the Tate Modern and V&A demonstrate the growing recognition of their unique artistic vision.
Courtesy the artist.
Jessica Wan: Your journey from organising feminist and LGBTQ events in China to your current artistic practice in London spans multiple forms of expression. How did this evolution shape your understanding of art as a tool for social change? Whiskey Chow: At the core of my practice is my artivist heart and lens – I strive to create space for marginalised communities, challenge power structures and empower audiences. My work presents provocative questions, makes the invisible visible and seeks to change the world through art.
My practice is context-sensitive, evolving with the sociopolitical environments I navigate. In China, my work responded to gender norms and homophobia within society at the time. In the UK, my Asian and migrant identity became a significant part of my intersectional experience, shaping my everyday observations and artistic responses as an othered body.
However, my work extends beyond personal experience – I use it to expose and challenge systemic inequalities, offering multiple entry points for engagement while placing radical care at the centre.
JW: As a drag king performer, how does your approach to masculinity differ when performing in western versus Asian contexts? How do audiences’ reactions vary? WC: I began my drag performance in 2016, just six months after moving to the UK. At the time, no one was referencing Cantonese opera in drag king performances. As a young Asian queer artist, having researched western drag history, I asked myself: how could I make my work relevant to my identity and cultural background?
Cantonese opera emerged naturally as an influence, offering a different aesthetic compared to the dominant western depictions of theatrical masculinity, from its colour palette and facial contouring to its ideals of masculinity. The king I embodied was unconventional by western drag standards – a pink-cheeked, soft-featured figure performing a dumpling-making act, slicing my fake beard and mixing it into the filling.
Rather than simply being a persona, I see this king as a radical embodiment and a decolonial gesture, challenging the definition of “drag king”. Some audiences didn’t know how to react; they had never seen anything like it before. One person awkwardly returned the beard dumpling I had handed out, saying, “I think I’d better give it back. I can’t eat it but I don’t want to throw it away.” This unexpected response mirrored my practice: combining consumable elements (food, cultural products) to create something that ultimately resists consumption, much like my position as an Asian queer artist in the west.
Although I’ve performed less frequently in Asia, in 2018 I presented M.A.C.H.O in Suzhou, a one-hour performance exploring racial hierarchy, masculinity and desirability politics within the gay community. I performed with 15 moustached balloons attached to my white shirt, stepping on 60kg of white button mushrooms, while blowing up three masculine inflatable dolls – hairy-chested, eerily smiling, with black hair, blue eyes but no genitals. I stood on the mushrooms, then squeezed the dolls, forcing the air out and leaving their deflated bodies collapsed on the mushrooms. Finally, I removed my white shirt, which remained suspended in the air, held up by the attached moustached balloons, creating a sculptural residue inside the museum space.
The audience reactions were strikingly different between Suzhou and London. In London, audiences came and went freely; a gay man from Hong Kong later told me how deeply he resonated with the piece. In Suzhou, the audience stood watching intently for the entire hour, carefully documenting the residue on their phones yet rarely engaging in immediate discussion.
Since my work is context-sensitive, I look forward to spending more time in Asia, creating performances shaped by my experiences and observation, while forging deeper connections with local audiences.
JW: Tell us more about your current residency at Studio Voltaire. How did you begin the residency and what have you been working on? WC: I began my residency at Studio Voltaire in November 2023, and I’ve felt fully supported and nourished by both the artist community and staff. In high-rent cities like London and New York, an artist studio with integrity like this is rare. The SV team deeply respect artists, recognising that professional development needs vary, and they offer insightful, tailored support, from one-on-one consultations to small-group workshops.
Resident artists are at different career stages and not everyone works as a full-time artist due to financial realities. SV understands this and remains flexible. The community also organises social gatherings around Christmas and Easter, as well as workshops on topics like art insurance, art law and access rider development. We support, celebrate and grow together.
SV’s robust exhibition programme, Open Studios, and international artist residency ensure that resident artists remain actively connected to the broader art world.
For my own project, I am developing a silicone version of Phoenix Chow – a queer hero I embody, inspired by Bruce Lee, Tom of Finland and UK LGBT history. Last year, I created a stainless steel Phoenix Chow sculpture alongside a CGI animation. This year, my focus is on silicone casting, experimenting with scale, and exploring the tension between soft and hard materiality, continuing to queer mainstream heroism and interrogate impenetrable masculinity.
JW: Through Queering Now 酷兒鬧, you’ve created a platform for queer Chinese and other Asian diaspora voices. What gaps in the current art landscape did you aim to address with this initiative? WC: My initial drive was to create something I longed for but couldn’t find. In 2019, after a few years of practising as an artist, I saw how marginalised identities were consumed by the western art world, with culturally specific nuances often lost in translation.
I wanted to build a space beyond the institutional and white gaze – where Chinese/Asian queer diaspora artists were supported by curators who truly understood their cultural context; where artists didn’t have to perform their identity to meet diversity requirements; where exhibited works could generate dialogue and enable intergenerational conversations. I wanted to support my peers in the way I wished to be supported. When I finally launched Queering Now酷兒鬧 in 2020 in London, the ecstatic Asian queer crowd and the feedback from participating artists confirmed its relevance and its essential role in the community.
Today, Queering Now酷兒鬧 continues to leave a lasting impact by inspiring new queer Asian programmes, collectives, platforms and events. Many have been initiated by individuals who once worked with, exhibited in or followed Queering Now酷兒鬧.
Radical and grassroots, yet maintaining high artistic quality, Queering Now酷兒鬧has cultivated a global community, amplified further by its digital edition in 2021. As my research continues, I hope to expand Queering Now酷兒鬧 through international residencies and fellowships, curating new editions worldwide and celebrating the Chinese/Asian queer diaspora across different cultural landscapes.
JW: Your work has been shown at institutions like the Tate Modern, V&A and Yorkshire Sculpture Park. How do you see your practice evolving, particularly in relation to institutional spaces? WC: Over the past eight years, I’ve performed and showcased my work twice at the V&A and three times at the Tate. I believe it’s vital for audiences to see diverse representations in major institutions, especially work by artists from less privileged backgrounds. To see and to be seen hold equal significance – our lived experiences are embedded in our work and institutions act as bridges, fostering dialogue and connecting our realities. Sometimes, they allow work to reach unexpected audiences – those who need it most. Art can offer them a space for being held and understood. This is the power of institutions and the magic that occurs when they centre marginalised voices.
From a professional standpoint, institutional recognition can open doors to greater exposure. For instance, after my work you must everywhere wander was shown at Yorkshire Sculpture Park in 2022, it was exhibited at the Leslie-Lohman Museum in New York in 2023. However, beyond visibility and recognition, what matters most to me is the critical friendships I’ve built with curators and fellow artists along the way. More importantly, it’s about how my work – on these major stages – can shift perspectives and spark meaningful conversations that inspire both others and myself.
Photo: Amber Yi Zheng. Courtesy the artist.
JW: As someone working at the intersection of performance, activism and education, what future possibilities do you envision for artist-activists working in diaspora communities? WC: We live in a chaotic world filled with uncertainty and crisis. Arts funding is shrinking and many artists are struggling with the rising cost of living. GoFundMe campaigns are everywhere – those who can vocalise their precarity often receive community support but what about those equally in need yet less skilled in initiating digital advocacy?
A radical redistribution of power and resources is crucial. For artists, activists and the diaspora community, hope remains. There is still the possibility to build a new ecosystem – one where mutual care is the norm and essential needs like housing and visas are actively supported.
Queering Now 酷兒鬧 is my way of reimagining the world. Being a tutor at a top art school [the Royal College of Art] allows me to facilitate meaningful change. My performances and artworks are my way to call for a radical future. I remain open – to all who dream of making the world better in their own way. And I hope my journey serves as a reminder that power lies within us and those willing to join the revolution – both within themselves and in the world – can create real change.
倫敦藝術家、社會運動參與者和華裔變裝國王 Whiskey Chow 的行為打破了傳統界限，包括以表演、動態映像、數碼藝術、雕塑和實驗印刷挑戰關於性別、陽剛氣質和亞洲身份的固有印象。Whiskey Chow是一位有著社會運動參與者內心的藝術家，其透過多面性的方式創作出審視系統性不平等現象的作品，同時提供空間予邊緣化的聲音，尤其是在華裔和其他亞洲僑民社區。
Whiskey Chow汲取了其早年在中國參與女性主義和 LGBTQ 活動的經驗，包括組織破格活動如《將陰道獨白到底》（2013 年）和首個中國 LGBTQ 音樂節《愛人同志音樂會》，所以其作品在西方環境下提供了獨特的非西方視角。其在Yorkshire Sculpture Park的《On Queer Ground》展覽上的作品《你必顧盼》（2021年），以及在泰特現代美術館和維多利亞與艾伯特博物館等著名機構上演的表演都證明了其獨特的藝術見解越來越受到認可。
Jessica Wan：從在中國組織的女性主義和 LGBTQ 活動到目前在倫敦的藝術創作，你的作品涵蓋了多種表達形式。這些變化如何影響你對利用藝術變革社會的看法？Whiskey Chow: 我的創作核心是我作為社會運動藝術家的熱情和視角——我努力為邊緣化群體創造空間，挑戰權力架構並賦予觀眾權力。我在作品中提出了一些值得深思的問題，使無形變成有形，並試圖透過藝術改變世界。
我的創作是基於環境，會隨著我所處的社會政治環境而有所變化。在中國，我的作品回應了當時社會中的性別定型和恐同情緒。在英國，我的亞裔和移民身分成為我多元交織經驗的主要部分，影響了我作為一個局外人的日常觀察和藝術表達。
然而，我的作品不只是個人經驗——我利用作品來揭露和挑戰系統性的不平等，在表現最重要的關心的同時提供多個了解情況的切入點。
JW：身為變裝國王表演者，你在西方和亞洲環境表演時對陽剛氣質的表達有何不同？觀眾的反應又有何不同？WC: 我在 2016 年開始進行變裝表演，當時搬到英國僅六個月。當時，沒有人在變裝國王表演中參考粵劇。作為一名年輕的亞洲酷兒藝術家，在研究西方變裝歷史後，我問自己：如何才能讓我的作品與我的身份和文化背景有所關聯？
粵劇自然而然地產生了影響。與西方主流的劇場陽剛氣質相比，粵劇從色彩、面部輪廓刻劃到對陽剛氣質的理解都提供了另一種不同的美學。我扮演的國王不符合西方變裝標準——是一個臉頰粉紅、五官柔和的角色，表演著包餃子，並把假鬍子剪下來混入餃子餡。
我認為我這個國王不僅僅是一個表演人物，更是一個重要的行動和一種去殖民化的姿態，挑戰了「變裝國王」的定義。有些觀眾不知道該如何反應；他們以前從未見過這樣的事情。一個人尷尬地把我給他的鬍鬚餃子還給我，說：「我想我最好把它還給你。我不能吃，但又不想丟掉它。」這種出乎意料的反應正正反映了我的作品含意：結合可消耗元素（食物、文化產品）來創造最終抵抗消耗的東西，就像我在西方當亞洲酷兒藝術家一樣。
雖然我很少在亞洲演出，但 2018 年我在蘇州表演了《M.A.C.H.O》，這是一場一小時的表演，探討了同志群體中的種族等級、陽剛氣質和吸引性。我的白襯衫上掛著 15 個有小鬍子的氣球，腳上踩著 60 公斤的白色蘑菇，同時吹著三個男性充氣娃娃——它們長滿胸毛、笑容詭異、黑髮藍眼，但是沒有生殖器。我站在蘑菇上擠壓娃娃，將裡面的空氣擠出來，然後讓它們變癟的身體倒在蘑菇上。最後，我脫下了白襯衫，但它仍然懸在半空中，由鬍子氣球吊起，在博物館內留下了一件殘留雕塑。
蘇州和倫敦觀眾的反應截然不同。在倫敦，觀眾走來走去觀賞；一位來自香港的男同志後來告訴我，這件作品引起了他深刻的共鳴。在蘇州，觀眾整整一小時都站著專心觀看，用手機仔細拍攝作品，卻很少即時討論。
由於我的作品對環境十分敏感，所以我期待可以有更多時間在亞洲以我的經歷和觀察創作表演，並與當地觀眾建立更深的聯繫。
JW：請多說說你現在在 Studio Voltaire 的駐留情況。你為什麼會住在那裡以及你一直在做什麼？WC: 我在 2023 年 11 月開始在 Studio Voltaire 駐留，我在那裡感受到了藝術家社群和工作人員的全力支持和培養。在倫敦、紐約等高租金城市，像這樣完整的藝術家工作室並不常見。 SV 團隊非常尊重藝術家，而且明白各人專業發展的需求都不一樣，從一對一諮詢到小組研討會，他們會提供富見解而度身訂造的支持。
駐留藝術家都處於不同的職業階段，考慮到經濟情況，並不是每個人都能成為全職藝術家。 SV 理解這一點，安排保持靈活。該社區還會在聖誕節和復活節期間舉辦社交聚會和關於藝術品保險、藝術法和輔助服務發展等主題的研討會。我們互相支持、一起慶祝、成長。
SV 豐富的展覽計劃「開放工作室」和國際藝術家駐留計劃確保駐留藝術家可以與廣大的藝術世界積極保持聯繫。
關於我個人的項目，我正在創作矽膠版本的Phoenix Chow——這是我創作的酷兒英雄，靈感來自李小龍、芬蘭的湯姆和英國 LGBT 歷史。去年，我製作了一個不銹鋼 Phoenix Chow 雕塑和一個電腦合成動畫。今年，我專注於矽膠塑、試驗比例及探索軟硬物質之間的張力，繼續探討主流英雄主義和挑戰傳統固有的陽剛文化。
JW：透過「酷兒鬧」，你為中國和其他亞裔酷兒創建了一個發聲平台。你希望透過這個平台解決當前藝術領域的哪些問題？WC: 我最初的想法是創造我希望有卻找不到的東西。在 2019 年，我在成為藝術家幾年後發現邊緣化身分在西方藝術世界總是被忽視，而且文化之間的細微差別也常常無法如實傳遞。
我希望建立一個超出制度和白人視角的空間，讓華裔／亞裔酷兒藝術家能夠得到真正了解他們文化背景的策展人的支持、讓藝術家不必演出自己的身份來滿足多樣性的需求、讓展出的作品可以引發對話並促進世代間的對話。我想以自己希望被支持的方式去支持我的同儕。當我在 2020 年終於在倫敦推出「酷兒鬧」的時候，欣喜若狂的亞洲酷兒群和參與藝術家的反饋證明了它的意義和對社群的重要性。
如今，「酷兒鬧」透過啟發新的亞洲酷兒計劃、團體、平台和活動仍帶來持久的影響。許多活動都是由曾經與「酷兒鬧」合作過、展出過或關注過的人發起。
「酷兒鬧」激烈又親民，同時亦維持高藝術品質，它已經培育了一個全球社區，並透過 2021 年的數碼版進一步擴大了影響力。隨著研究持續，我希望透過國際駐留計劃和獎學金來擴展「酷兒鬧」，在世界各地建立新的版本和歡迎有不同文化背景的中國／亞裔酷兒。
JW：你的作品曾在泰特現代美術館、V&A 博物館及Yorkshire Sculpture Park等地方展出。你對自己的工作發展有什麼看法？尤其是與機構相關的部分。WC: 在過去八年，我曾兩次在V&A 博物館、三次在泰特美術館表演並展示我的作品。我認為讓觀眾在主流機構中看到多元化的代表作品非常重要，尤其是背景較平凡的藝術家的作品。看和被看同等重要，我們的作品融入了真實的經歷，而機構則充當橋樑促進對話，連接我們的現實。有時，他們可以讓作品接觸到意想不到的受眾——那些最需要它們的人。藝術可以為他們提供一個被接納和理解的空間。這就是機構的力量，它們將邊緣化的聲音集中起來時所產生的魔力。
從專業角度來看，得到機構的認可可以帶來更多的曝光機會。例如我的作品《你必顧盼》於2022年在Yorkshire Sculpture Park展出後，又於 2023 年在紐約的Leslie-Lohman Museum展出。可是除了知名度和認可，對我來說重要的是一路上我與策展人和藝術家建立的珍貴友誼。最關鍵的是我的作品在這些重要階段如何改變觀眾的看法和引發有意義的對話，從而啟發其他人和我自己。
JW：你在表演、社會運動和教育方面都有所涉獵，你對於僑民社區的藝術家和社會運動參與藝術家的未來有何看法？WC: 我們生活在一個充滿不確定性和危機的混亂世界。藝術資助資金在縮減，許多藝術家都掙扎著應付不斷上漲的生活成本。 GoFundMe 活動到處可見——能夠表達自己困難的人會得到社群的支持，可是其他同樣需要幫助但不熟悉網絡生態的人怎麼辦？
大型重新分配權力和資源非常重要。藝術家、社會運動參與者和僑民社群心中仍存希望。我們仍然有機會建立一個新的生態系統——一個會互相關心和積極提供居所和簽證等基本需求支持的生態系統。
「 酷兒鬧」是我重新想像世界的方式。作為頂尖藝術學校（英國皇家藝術學院）的導師，我可以促進有意義的變革。我的表演和藝術作品是我呼籲激烈改變未來的方式。我對每位夢想以自己的方式讓世界變得更美好的人始終保持開放態度。我希望我的經驗能提醒大家力量就在我們手中，希望那些願意加入改革的人都能帶來真正的改變，無論是對於他們自己還是對於世界，無論改革是「大」是「小」都一樣。
