Abstract
This chapter discusses the start of Anthony Key’s art career, which followed his arrival in Britain in 1972, and explores his first attempts to discover an art language of his own. This art language has Chinese food as its basic staple and is a fusion of various styles, cultures, and religions, including minimalist architecture, pop art, surrealist art, and Buddhism. Key’s practice explores issues of cultural identity, especially the formation of a British Chinese identity. What does it mean to be of Chinese ethnicity and living in Britain today? Key employs autobiography as his methodology, using his artworks to examine questions such as “Where do I belong?” and “How do I fit in the world?”
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Notes
- 1.
Hemkow Sing Key, personal communication.
- 2.
Till Death Us Do Part. Creator Johnny Speight. London Weekend Television for ITV. Originally The Ramsey’s, Comedy Playhouse. 1965.
- 3.
Lesley Brown (Ed.), The New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, p. 1481. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.
- 4.
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport carried out the survey called “Naked Translations” on 14 June 2004.
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Key, A. (2018). From South China to South London: A Journey in Search of Home Through Fine Art Practice. In: Thorpe, A., Yeh, D. (eds) Contesting British Chinese Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71159-1_7
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