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HUA JIN 靳华 / [email protected] / Instagram

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Hua Jin is a visual artist born in China, now living and working between Montreal and Vancouver, Canada. She holds an MFA in Studio Arts from Concordia University in Montreal and a BFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Vancouver.

Jin has exhibited widely across North America, Asia, and Europe. Her works are part of esteemed public and private collections, including the Canada Art Bank, Global Affairs Canada, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the City of Montreal, the Montreal Arts Council, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Shanghai. Notably, one of her pieces is on permanent display at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Her large-scale photographic works were also showcased at the Canadian Pavilion during Expo 2020 in Dubai. She has participated in numerous artist residencies and has received more than 30 awards and grants, including the inaugural Cultural Diversity in Visual Arts Award presented by the Conseil des Arts de Montréal.

At the core of Jin's practice lies a profound engagement with nature as both subject and teacher. Her dual cultural identity as a Chinese-Canadian artist enriches this dialogue, infusing it with Eastern philosophical depth and aesthetic sensibility. Her work reflects a Taoist-like approach—contemplating the “way” of being through close observation of natural phenomena. She is particularly drawn to elements that exist just beneath the threshold of perception: the natural forces that, though invisible, profoundly shape existence and reality. Her work seeks to visualize these unseen forces, translating their rhythms and flows into contemplative, immersive visual experiences. Jin is especially interested in the spiritual, meditative, and inspirational dimensions of nature. Through her work, she aims to evoke a sense of awe while encouraging a deeper awareness—an awakening to the interconnectedness of all living things. Her practice explores themes of impermanence, transformation, the passage of time, and the transient nature of existence. She believes that interpreting human narratives through the lens of nature—a broader and more encompassing perspective—can reveal shared truths that transcend cultural and personal differences.

Jin acknowledges the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), which have enabled her to realize many of her artistic projects.

EDUCATION
2015 MFA, Studio Arts: Photography, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada
2012 BFA, Fine Arts Photography, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Vancouver, BC, Canada

SELECTED SOLO & TWO PERSON EXHIBITIONS
2024 Visual Diary, Canton-sardine, Vancouver, BC.
  Flow, Yvonne L. Bombardier Cultural Center , QC, Canada
  The Things We Cannot See, SBC Gallery of Contemporary Art, Montreal, QC, Canada
2022 - 2023    Sometimes We Look, Sometimes We see, Biosphere Museum, Montreal, QC.
2020    Invisible Forces, with Iris Amizlev(curator), La Castiglione (at Projet Casa), Montreal, QC Canada
2019    Dundee, Centre Culturel Notre-Dame-de-Grace, Montreal, Canada
            Into the Woods, Conseil des arts de Montréal, QC, Canada
            My Big Family, Photo Gaspésie, Chandler, QC, Canada
            The Trees Want to Remain Quiet, But The Wind Won't Stop, Contact Photography Festival Featured Exhibition,
            The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, ON, Canada
            Dundee, Capture Photo Festival selected exhibition, Vancouver, Canada
            Flowers and Monster, Hua Jin & Ari Bayuaji, The Stewart Hall Cultural Centre, Pointe-Claire, QC
2018    The Wind of Time, Lianzhou International Foto Festival 2018, Guangzhou, China.
            Peony, Capture Photo Festival, Viridian Gallery, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2017    Moonlight, Capture Photo Festival, Viridian Gallery, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2016    Undulating Landscape - Hua Jin & Neil Goodman, The Research House for Asian Art (RHAA), Chicago, USA
            Don’t Look You Will See, Lonsdale Gallery, Toronto, Canada
            Compound Vision - Hua Jin & Fu Meng, John B. Aird Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2015    Don’t Look, You Will See, Concordia University MFA gallery, Montreal, QC, Canada
            CHECKPOINT - Hua Jin & Pavitra Wickramasinghe, Festival Accés Asie, Maison de la culture de Cote-des-Neiges, Montréal, Canada
2012    My Big Family, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC, Canada
2011    My Big Family, 221A Artist Run Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada

SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2025    The 5th International Localize Imagine Festival, Changsha, China
2023    Breathing/Responding: A Canadian-Chinese artist’s exchange project, Art Gallery of Hamilton, ON, Canada
  Maison modèle Benefit Exhibition, Centre Clark, Montreal, QC, Canada
  The Beginning of Spring, Town Hall of Wappingers Falls, NY, US
2022    Culture China The 4th Global Overseas Chinese Artist Exhibition in Working: Women in Art Practice,
He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen, China
2021    Fine Art Exhibition, Canadian Pavilion at International EXPO, 2020, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
  Deux par deux | Buissonnière exposure, Galerie B-312, Montreal, QC, Canada
2020    Unique Photo Exhibition, Castiglione Gallery, Montreal, QC, Canada
2019    ARTS OF ONE WORLD, Curated by Iris Amizlev, Erell and Laura Vigo, Stephan Crétier and Stéphany Maillery Wing,
Museum of Fine Art Montreal, Montreal, Canada
  Temporary Files, Centre Sagamie, Alma, Quebec, Canada
  Territory II, in Satellite with Momenta, Marie-Josée Rousseau (curator), Castiglione Gallery, Montreal, QC, Canada
  At Three Miles an Hour, Strondin Studio, Seyeisfjoreur, Iceland
  Common Waters, Cambridge Art Galleries and BRIDGE, Ontario, Canada
2018    Reconnection, Museum of Fine Art Montreal, Montreal, Canada
2017    Second Chinese Women Artists Video Art Festival 2017, Mexico
  Zoom on Montreal, Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, Montreal
2016    Gazing into Water (featured exhibition), Xishuangbanna International Photo Festival, Kunming, China
2015    Fall Show, Douglas Udell Gallery, Edmonton, Canada
  Crossroads, Contact Photography Festival, Lonsdale Gallery, Toronto, Canada
2014    PhotoFourm, Les Territoires Gallery, Montreal, Canada
  Through the Body: Lens Based Works by Chinese Women Artists, Contact Photo Festival,
University of Toronto Art Centre, Toronto, Canada
2014    Conversing in the Passing of Time, FOFA gallery, Montreal, Canada
  Untitled, Capture Photography Festival, Douglas Udell Gallery, Vancouver, Canada
2013    EGO (Exploitation, Glorification, Objectification), ZhouB Art Centre, Chicago, USA
  Ultramoderne, MFA Exhibition, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada
2012    Emily Carr Award Winner Show, Winsor Gallery, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2011    2011 Top 20 Chinese Emerging Contemporary Photographers, Zhejiang Art Museum,Hangzhou, China

PUBLIC ART
2026    (upcoming) The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON.
2023    Zoom Art Project, Laval, QC, Canada.
2023   Rainbow, Charlesbourg Elementary School Public Art, Quebec City, Canada.
2022 - 2023    Sometimes We Look, Sometimes We see, Biosphere Museum, Montreal, QC.
2022 The Art of Haiku, Dorval, QC, Canada.
2021 The Permanent Collection on Display, Hua Jin & James Nizam, Parc Edgewater, Pointe-Claire.

SCREENING
2023 20 Minutes and 28 Seconds of Sunset, 10th annual Korean Film Festival Canada.
2022 20 Minutes and 28 Seconds of Sunset, Hello Winter, Barrie, ON, Canada.

SCENOGRAPHY
2022 Seulement toi, Marilene Basttien & Anne Plamondon, Montreal QC, Canada.

PHOTO BOOK
2023 Dundee, VU Publication QC, Canada

SELECT ART FAIRS & AUCTIONS
2022    ESSE Benefit Auction, Montreal, QC, Canada
2020    ART TORONTO, online, Canada
2019    ART TORONTO, Toronto, Canada
            Papier, Montreal, QC, Canada
2018    Papier, Montreal, QC, Canada
2013    Centre A's 14th Anniversary Fundraising Auction show, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2012    Centre A's 13th Anniversary Fundraising Auction show, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2011    SNAP! Live Auction, Toronto, ON, Canada
2009    China Earthquake Relief Fundraising Silent Auction, Vancouver, BC, Canada

SELECTED ARTIST RESIDENCY
2020    Assemblages, VU Centre, Quebec City, QC, Canada
2019    37th Contemporary Art International Symposium of Baie Saint-Paul, QC, Canada
            Wanderlust, Skaftfell Thematic Residency, Iceland
2018    Biophilia, Ayatana Residency, Ottawa, ON, Canada
2017    Centre Sagamie, Printing Residency Alma, Quebec, Canada
            Breathing: Canadian & Chinese Artists Co-habitation-Co-creation Residence Project, Beijing, China
            Van Art Farm Residency, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2016    Vermont Studio Centre, Vermont, US

SELECTED ARTIST TALK
2023    Artist Talk, FOG-UBC Botanical Garden, BC, Canada
2022    COP15 - Panel discussion on biodiversity as a source of inspiration, Biosphere Museum, Montreal, QC. Canada
            Artist talk, John Abbott College, Montreal, QC, Canada
            Artist talk, Biosphere Museum, Montreal, QC. Canada
2019    Territory II, In Satellite with Momenta, La Castiglione Gallery, Montreal, QC, Canada
            The Stewart Hall Cultural Centre, Pointe-Claire, QC, Canada
            Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, QC, Canada
2018    Asia Pacific Art and Culture Association, Montreal, QC, Canada
2017     Viridian Gallery, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2015    CBC, “The National” interview, Montreal, QC, Canada
2014    University of Toronto Art Centre, Toronto, Canada
2012    CBC, “North by Northwest” interview, Vancouver, BC, Canada
            Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC, Canada
2011    221A Artist Run Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:
2022    “2020 Visual Diary”, Chinese Photography, China, March 2022
2021    “2020 Visual Diary", Popular Photography, China, May 2021
2020    “Territoires II”, Christian Roy, Ciel Variable, No114. Winter 2020, Quebec, CA
2019    “Hua Jin: Dundee”, by Christian Roy, Vie des Arts, Quebec, Oct 08, 2019
            Germinating Herbarium, A book of Botanical Art, Issue 1 of The Ayatana Artists's Research Annual
            “Vertigo”, Le Sabord, Trois-Rivières, Québec, 2019
2018    Montreal Has a New Art Award, Canadian Art by Leah Sandals, Dec 4, 2018
            “Dundee”, Chinese Photographers, Nov, 2018.

COLLECTIONS:
2023    Canada Art Bank, Canada
2020    Hydro-Québec, QC, Canada
            Montreal Art Council, QC, Canada
            Mu, Montreal, QC, Canada
            City of Montreal, QC, Canada
2019    Desjardins Collection, Canada
            Stewart Hall Art Gallery, QC, Canada
            Canada Foreign Affairs, ON, Canada
2018    Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, QC, Canada
2007    Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai, Shanghai, China

SELECTED AWARDS:
2023    Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), Research and Creation Grant.
2022    Canada Council for the Arts, Research and Creation in the Visual Arts.
2019    Coup de C?ur de la 37e édition du Symposium international d’art contemporain de Baie-Saint-Paul, QC.
  Canada Council for the Arts, International Residency Program in the Visual Arts.
2018    Cultural Diversity in Visual Arts Award, The Conseil des arts de Montréal
  Canada Council for the Arts, Research and Creation in the Visual Arts.
  Canada Council for the Arts, Professional Development for Artists.
2017    Museum of Fine Art Montreal, Montreal, QC, Reconnection Project Grant.
  Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), Research and Creation Grant.
  Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), Acquisition and Marketing Grant.
2016    Canada Council for the Arts, International Residency Program in the Visual Arts.
  Canada Council for the Arts, Travel Grants to Professionals in the Visual Arts.
  Vermont Studio Artist / Writer Grant, Vermont, US
2015    The Fine Arts Travel Award, Concordia University, Montreal
  Joyce Melville Memorial Scholarship, Concordia University, Montreal
2013    Michael-Smith Foreign Study Supplement Scholarship, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Canada
  Joseph-Amand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Canada
2012    Emerging Artist of the 2012 Mayor’s Arts Award for Visual Arts, Vancouver, BC, Canada
  First-place winner in the Canon Photography Awards, 2012 Emily Carr Grad Award
2011    Top 20 Chinese Emerging Contemporary Photographers, Zhejiang, China

WORK DONATIONS:
2024   BC Children Hospital
2024   UNICEF Canada Help Children in Gaza
2020   Relief for communities affected by the landslides in Seyeisfj?reur, Iceland
2008   Wenchuan China Earthquake Relief Donation

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