Fan Ho 1932 - 2016
Represented by:
Blue Lotus Gallery
Fan Ho earned his fame as one Asia’s most beloved street photographers capturing Hong Kong in the 50’s and 60’s. Ho Fan’s photographic career started in Shanghai at the early age of 14 when given his first brownie for his birthday from his father. Within the first year he won his first award. In 1949, at the age of 18, the family moved to Hong Kong where the young Ho Fan continued pursuing his love for photography.
Dubbed the ‘Cartier-Bresson’ of the East’ Ho Fan patiently waited for ‘the decisive moment’; very often a collision of the unexpected, framed against a very clever composed background of geometrical construction and texture. He created cinematic drama with backlit effects or through the combination of smoke and light. His favourite locations were the streets, alleys and markets around dusk.
What made his work so intensely human is his love for the common Hong Kong people; coolies, vendors, hawkers or kids playing in the street. As per Mr Ho; ‘I love Hong Kong and I love Hong Kong people’’ He never intended to create a historic record of the city’s buildings and monuments; rather he aimed to capture the soul of Hong Kong; the hardship and resilience of its citizens.
Ho Fan was most prolific in his teens and 20’s and created his biggest body of work before he reached the tender age of 28. His work didn’t go by unnoticed at the time. He won close to 300 local and international awards and titles. His talent was spotted by the film industry where he started out as an actor before moving to film directing until retiring at 65
Ho Fan is a Fellow of the Photographic Society America and the Royal Photographic Society in England, an Honorary Member of the Photographic societies of Singapore, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy and Belgium. He most recently won a 'Life-time Achievement Award, the 2nd Global Chinese Int'l Photography Award, China, 2015' by the Chinese Photographic Society (Guangzhou).
During his long career he has taught photography and film making at a dozen universities worldwide. His work is in many private and public collection of which most notable are: M+ Museum, Hong Kong, Heritage Museum, Hong Kong, Bibliothèque National de France, Paris, France, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, USA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, USA and many more..
Dubbed the ‘Cartier-Bresson’ of the East’ Ho Fan patiently waited for ‘the decisive moment’; very often a collision of the unexpected, framed against a very clever composed background of geometrical construction and texture. He created cinematic drama with backlit effects or through the combination of smoke and light. His favourite locations were the streets, alleys and markets around dusk.
What made his work so intensely human is his love for the common Hong Kong people; coolies, vendors, hawkers or kids playing in the street. As per Mr Ho; ‘I love Hong Kong and I love Hong Kong people’’ He never intended to create a historic record of the city’s buildings and monuments; rather he aimed to capture the soul of Hong Kong; the hardship and resilience of its citizens.
Ho Fan was most prolific in his teens and 20’s and created his biggest body of work before he reached the tender age of 28. His work didn’t go by unnoticed at the time. He won close to 300 local and international awards and titles. His talent was spotted by the film industry where he started out as an actor before moving to film directing until retiring at 65
Ho Fan is a Fellow of the Photographic Society America and the Royal Photographic Society in England, an Honorary Member of the Photographic societies of Singapore, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy and Belgium. He most recently won a 'Life-time Achievement Award, the 2nd Global Chinese Int'l Photography Award, China, 2015' by the Chinese Photographic Society (Guangzhou).
During his long career he has taught photography and film making at a dozen universities worldwide. His work is in many private and public collection of which most notable are: M+ Museum, Hong Kong, Heritage Museum, Hong Kong, Bibliothèque National de France, Paris, France, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, USA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, USA and many more..
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