Henry Chung is a photographer who was born in New York City and studied at Columbia University and New York University.  Chung’s interest in the image begins with its physical construct and then extends into the particulars of detail.

The artist’s current body of work selects the anonymous portrait as its subject.  Using old photographs found in both flea markets and antique stores, Chung transferred portraits of unknown individuals onto vintage computer punch tape, an obsolete technology, and then assembled each representation by hand.  Anonymous #40 (2010) reflects the smiling expression of a woman wearing a 1930s coat and hat.  Anonymous #50 (2010) pieces together the portrait of a bespectacled man.

When seen in person, the large scale of eah piece poses a tension between the medium and what it represents.  By leaving each piece titled  Anonymous accompanied by a number, the artist strikes an irony by conflating discarded identities with a medium that has limited availability.

In June 2011 RHV Fine Art hosted a solo show of Henry Chung’s new work, and his art was also featured in New Year, New Work, New Faces a group show at the Storefront Gallery in Brooklyn.  The artist also had a solo show in 2010 at the Sweet Lorraine Gallery.  Since 2006, Chung’s work has appeared in the annual Visual AIDS Benefit. In September 2012 the artist exhibited a series of new portraits at the Governor’s Island Art Fair.