How this 13-year-old Hong Kong artist went from drawing on a sketch toy to translating emotions onto a canvas

At the age of three, Celeste was already the youngest child in Hong Kong to have held two solo art exhibitions. In 2020, the gifted girl was named Most Promising Artist of the Year by United Overseas Bank Art Academy.

Last October, she won the Art Critic Award for those aged 13 to 18 in the reputed 13th Nakamura Keith Haring Collection International Children’s Drawing Contest.

The young artist’s passion for drawing can be traced back to when she was just a toddler. Her mother, Eva Wong Sum-yiuh, discovered her daughter’s talent through a sketch board toy.

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On the screen, little Celeste had drawn a person with distinct facial features and had even given her a pretty dress and earrings.

“It wasn’t perfect, but we were amazed by what she could do when she was only a one-year-old,” said Wong.

As she realised her daughter’s interest in drawing went beyond one random doodle, the mother started to use art as leverage to make her daughter sit still and eat – all the while slowly nurturing her talent.

Ever since, Celeste has been drawing every day.

For her, art is spontaneous. She experiments with all kinds of styles and techniques from abstract paintings to Chinese contemporary art and digital art. But while she takes inspiration from artists worldwide, many of her works originate from her need to express her everyday feelings, often using her brush to reflect her mood.

“If my mum does something irritating like giving me a big stack of exercises, I draw her after I’ve done all the work,” said Celeste, adding that shouting was not how she preferred to express her anger.

For example, after arguments with her mother, she draws ugly caricatures of her mum, exaggerating her body parts to reflect her feelings. Or when she needs a break between revisions, she vents her frustrations onto whatever materials she has on hand.

“I don’t even know what I am drawing. I’m just putting what’s in my head onto the canvas,” she said, adding that she would usually finish drawing in less than half an hour.

Her mum recalled that an art teacher once said Celeste was a rare “natural” artist and praised her ability to convey her thoughts into art immediately.

“I never need to think of the structure or create a draft before I start making my art,” the student said.

While winning awards gives her a sense of satisfaction, Celeste prefers being able to express herself freely without the restraints of a topic or specified medium.

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But since starting secondary school, the artist said there was less time for her creative pursuits as she needed to keep up with her increasing workload. Her prioritisation of academics over art reflects her future goals as well.

“Drawing is a hobby ... I will keep doing this until I am very old, but I may not be making a living as an artist,” she stated.

Despite her practical vision of her future career path, Celeste still recognises that art is crucial for her well-being.

“I always want more time to make art. I know I will be much happier,” she said.

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