Ketty Haolin Zhang: Visual Artist and Interdisciplinary Painter

Ketty Haolin Zhang is an emerging interdisciplinary visual artist whose practice is deeply rooted in her experiences as a 1.5-generation immigrant. Born in Chaoyang, China, and currently based in Vancouver, Canada, Zhang utilizes her background to navigate complex themes of placelessness, liminality, and (non)belonging within a hyper-globalized society. Her artistic output is characterized by a dual focus on painting and mixed-media sculpture, often featuring nighttime scenes that evoke emotional tension or resin sculptures constructed from found objects tied to personal and immigrant identity. Ketty Haolin Zhang holds a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in Visual Arts and Art History from the University of British Columbia. Her work has been showcased internationally in venues such as White Columns in New York, the Centre of International Contemporary Art, and the Vancouver Art Book Fair. Zhang’s reputation as a cultural worker and artist is further solidified by her participation in prestigious residencies across the globe, including Casa Lü in Mexico City, Acentric Space in Shanghai, and Kunstraum in New York City. Through her explorations of domestic objects, nightlife, and liminal spaces, she unpacks the sense of belonging associated with the in-between, resisting simple definitions while striving to embody both closeness and distance. Her work continues to be recognized in major publications like Dazed, CBC Arts, and SAD Mag, reflecting her significant contribution to the contemporary art dialogue regarding cultural identity and the millennial diasporic experience.