Still Life

Tell us about yourself and what you do for work!
My name is Chingyi and I’m the co-founder of Art Again, a marketplace for pre-owned art.

We understand you’ve been an art gallerist for about seven years, but only co-founded this start-up a couple years ago. What has this journey and eventual transition been like for you?
There have been plenty of ups and downs, but the learning journey is what’s most important. Being able to meet different people will different collecting interests has been rewarding, and it just feels real, that every chance I get to advance the company, I have to go out and grab it. Whereas before, working for a company that’s not your own, I felt a little bit more relaxed (laughs).

Could you explain bit more about what you mean when you talk about collecting interests?
By collecting interests, I mean collecting habits. So basically what these collectors like or dislike, or what makes them happy or upset.

Understanding these collecting interests comes with experience in reading people, so it’s interesting to develop that skill. And as you build relationships with collectors over the years, you start to understand them better, and you learn to navigate all that to get the best results for both yourself and the company.

Interesting! So when you talk about engaging clients beyond just selling, it’s also about understanding their wants and needs. Then how do you build a stronger relationship with them?
It’s more about engaging with them on topics that aren’t directly related to what you’re selling. You might talk a bit about history—sometimes you come across interesting things, like a painting featured in a book that you think a client would appreciate, or an exhibition curated by a certain person happening in a specific city.

These are all specific knowledge that my clients would like to know, so being able to share that makes them feel more enriched, and when they see that you’re putting in that extra effort, they’re more likely to enjoy working with you.

With the landscape of art shifting with digital art like NFTs, how do you think the value of art is changing with the times?
Not to go too deep, but I think it’s great that so many different types of art have surfaced across various mediums. It helps people articulate what they like and don’t like. There’s simply more to appreciate now compared to before, so I think it’s a good thing that people are talking about art in general—whether it’s digital or oil on canvas.

Are there any upcoming exhibitions that you are looking forward to visiting?
There’s an exhibition at the National Gallery titled City of Others: Asian Artists in Paris, 1920s-1940s that I want to visit. The show is exhibiting various works from Chinese artists that lived in Paris during that time, and the works of my favourite painter, Sanyu, is in it. He mainly paints still life and has a very beautiful modernist style that just exudes a lot of elegance. Plus, that fusion of asian and western modernism is something that I find beautiful.

Your dream artwork to have is—
Any one of Sanyu’s still lifes, for sure. Like one of his paintings of chrysanthemums! Those are beautiful.