Interview with Momo Meng

Imaginative, aesthetic, thought-provoking, they are the traits of Momo Meng's artwork. Momo loves observing society, exploring the deep emotions of humans and animals, and capturing them in her art. She creates works to be the voice for the voiceless, the powerless, the hopeless, in order to fight against the absurd, the violence and inequalities. She wishes her creations could resonate with the audience, raise their awareness, and be the standing point to fight for a better future, a better society which has variety, equality, unity, a healthy environment, and respect for all living beings.

Photoshop and CorelDraw are Momo’s favorite tools. With an urban design background, her works are creative with a rigorous sense of spatial perspective. Momo holds a B.Eng. Urban Planning and Design from Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou City, China. Through exhibitions and publications, Momo’s artworks have been shown across Europe and China.

How would you describe yourself and your artwork?

I described myself as “creative, childish, and passionate” in my first artist statement, till this day, these three words still apply precisely about my character. If I need to add a few points, I would say I’m the combination of impulse and rigour, also, I’m extremely persistent in pursuing the beauty of art.

My artworks are the reflections of my character. Imaginative, vibrant, aesthetic, thought-provoking, they are the traits of my artwork. I love observing society, exploring the deep emotions of humans and animals, and capturing them in my art. Therefore, many of my works are related to the themes of society, animals and human nature. I wish my creations could resonate with the audience, give people comfort and strength. I also wish my works could raise the audience’s awareness, and be the standing point to fight for a better future, a better society which has variety, equality, unity, a healthy environment, and respect for all living beings.

How do you go about beginning a new piece? Do you have an idea already in mind, or do you start working with materials or sketches to find the departure point?

I often have a global picture in my mind as a guide first, and then start to create practically. Sketches and references are very important. Because the imaginary goal is vague, the sketches and references can effectively put forward a practical operation plan for achieving that goal, and correct the unreasonable places in the imagination. For example, recently I’m working on the biggest and most complex art project of my career so far. I collected and referred to a lot of materials, drew nearly 50 sketches for comparison, and finally found the best composition and direction to proceed further.

When do you think your most prolific time of day or week is?

In the small hours of the morning, the flame of imagination can light up every dark room outside the window. For many people who are in the arts or creative industries, dark night is a prime time they are reluctant to consume with sleep. Because the night is full of magic, it can make people's thoughts surge, it can move the deepest emotions in one's heart to the surface, and it can give birth to the most exuberant creative power of human beings. Creating in the night seems to be a habit I can't get rid of.

What is a barrier you as an artist overcame? Is there anything that enabled you to develop your work as an artist in your life?

In terms of creation, the biggest challenge I have encountered is that I have so many ideas, which are very ambitious and complex, the difficulty of implementation is high, and I often worry that the result of completion is not as good as ideal. In order to break through these obstacles, I often draw a large number of sketches for each project, and through the comparison of these sketches, I can effectively clarify ideas and find the best solution plan. Well, making a small step every day, in the long run, I believe I will be closer and closer to my goal.

In terms of will, most of the time, being an artist is not glamorous. It’s a very lonely job, you will encounter a lot of self-doubt and denial during the process of creation, and you will rarely receive encouragement and understanding from others. In order to get through all those long and dark nights, you need to have a very strong heart, and keep the persevering and passionate pursuit of your artistic dreams.

Life itself is the source of creative inspiration. Jumping into the river of life, drifting along with it, feeling the twists and turns of it, this is the best way to hone a person into an artist. Of course, there is a more efficient method, reading, which is the easiest way to allow a person to experience thousands of different lives in one lifetime.

Did you have an idea of what you wanted to create right from the beginning?

I never lack creative inspiration, and I have a notebook that contains every spontaneous idea and thought I catch in a timely manner. So yes, I always have an idea from the beginning.

What is the meaning or creative inspiration for your work? We’re curious what the narrative or story is to what you are producing?

I wish that every work I create is a magical seed of art. While bringing the audience visual enjoyment of beauty, it also takes root in their hearts. When the time is ripe, painting, music, poetry, novels, philosophy and so on will sprout out from the bottom of the audience's heart like branches and leaves, and the small seed of art will gradually grow into a fruitful towering tree. The fruit of the tree can nourish people's soul, the lush branches and leaves can shelter people's heart from hardships of life, and the giant trunk can lift people high enough to see and understand the essence and true meaning of life.

I'm currently working on a self-exploring project, tentatively named "Breeds of Self". It is the biggest and most complex art project of my career so far. I believe when it is finished, I will be able to display a microcosm of my inner world, thus I can have a better understanding of myself and the meaning of life. I also hope that the audience will resonate strongly with the series of work in this project, find the courage and strength to explore their inner universe, and have a fulfilling and passionate life.

Besides your artworks, are there any other things in life that your voice as an artist may consider vital or valuable? What makes you joyful and creative, in other words?

Different genres of art are connected and complementary. A true artist will definitely agree with this, and has a keen interest in various forms of art. Personally, drawing is not the whole of my life. Moreover, it is impossible to generate good inspiration by facing the drawing board all the time. In addition to drawing, what makes me happiest and inspired are reading literature and listening to music. In literature, poetry, novels, philosophy, psychology books are my favorites. Through reading, I feel like I can travel through time and space and become close friends with countless great writers and scholars. In music, I like electronic and metal music, the ones which have heavy beats and can fully express strong emotions. They are the noise reducer for my mind, the powerful battery that helps me move forward. Furthermore, photography, watching film and television works, playing computer games, traveling, and exercising, all of which make me feel happy, relieve my inner pressure, stimulate inspiration, and fill me with indispensable positive momentum during every creation.

Are there any exhibitions or places where people can see these beautiful creations in person soon? Anything on the horizon?

Due to the pandemic, I haven't participated in offline exhibitions and art fairs for almost two years. Therefore, I'm really looking forward to exhibiting at the Oxford International Art Fair next year 2022 in October.  Meanwhile, two art books containing my works will be published next year, and I can't wait to see them and hold them in my hands. Of course, my lovely website www.momomeng.com is always a great place to see the collection of my creations, and you are very welcome to visit it. Enjoy!

Website: www.momomeng.com