PROFILE: Ben Ali Ong

BEN ALI ONG // PHOTO MEDIA

Happenstance: What does pop art mean to you, and would you consider yourself a pop artist?

Ben: Although my own work doesn’t fall under the label of pop art, I do enjoy it and have always looked at that kind of work for inspiration, especially in the areas of photo collage. To me pop means challenging the traditional notions of low art and high or “fine art”, and breaking those boundaries.

H: Tell us a little about what you’re showing in Hip Pop, and where you drew your inspiration for it.

B: I’m showing a couple pieces from my series Black Sun (the art of dying). The work revolves around the themes of mortality and consciousness, ideas I always explore. It’s an interpretation of the Tibetian Book of the Dead and Egypt’s Bardot Thodol, which are both scriptures used to guide the soul to the afterlife.  I’m also playing on the idea that a photograph metaphorically always represents death, in the fact that it is a moment passed.

H: What attracted you to the kind of photography you make?

B: I’ve always been attracted to the darker aesthetics of art, looking a lot at people like Goya and Bacon, those themes are all there.  The whole Japanese black and white style of photography too, all these guys explore the notions of identity and mortality by looking at the spherical view of life and death.

H: Do you have any tips, tricks, or advice for young artists trying to get their work out there?

B: I’m still learning myself, but I know that what has worked for me so far, was to have a recognizable style of my own. I think it’s important to follow your instincts and do what you love, from there you’ll find your own voice I guess, and just keep doing that. Don’t worry about making work that is in fashion or popular because that always changes. Also don’t follow the rules, in all the different “movements” there are these rules so to speak, forget them! As important as technique is to learn when your starting out, it can also be a trap if you are bound by it.

VISIT BEN’S WEBSITE HERE.