乡 Hometown

In 2024 artist Samantha Jiayin Ou-Yang visited her father and grandfather’s hometown of Jun’anzhen, Guangdong Province in southern China. During her stay, she took part in the 170-year-old festival 关帝侯王巡游 or ‘The Procession of Emperor Guan Yu’. In the wake of her experiences, she developed her exhibition 乡 Hometown: a series of images that capture the feelings of frenzy and fervour felt during the festival.

During the week-long celebration, family and community gather to place offerings for good fortune, burn paper money for wealth, pray for prosperity and share their hopes for the future. Ou-Yang’s work highlights how tradition and cultural heritage are like threads interwoven throughout the fabric of her community; when pulled it is these threads that tighten and gather to bring the individuals together regardless of the distance or time between them.

Samantha Jianyin Ou-Yang is a photographer currently in her first year of tertiary study at the University of Auckland. Heritage, memory and connection are central to her artistic approach. Ou-Yang’s work has previously been exhibited in the Malcolm Smith Gallery as part of Howick Youth Council’s East Auckland Visual Arts Showcase, 2024.

乡 Hometown is her first solo exhibition.

To view the video element of this exhibition, please click here.

About The Wall

The Wall is dedicated to supporting East Auckland artists working towards secondary or tertiary study. This exhibition space allows emerging artists to experience the process of exhibition making without the pressure that comes with the scale of a traditional gallery space. Situated amongst the hustle and bustle of the UXBRIDGE concourse, this gallery space allows young artists more exposure than its counterpart. Artist will have the opportunity to engage with the community and gain experience talking about their practice through optional Artist Talks and other public programming. After their exhibition, emerging artists will have a clearer understanding of the unseen aspects of exhibition making while members of the public will gain awareness of local creatives in their community.