“Creating art and writing scratches an itch under my skin. It’s satisfying to form literal creations out of nothing but ideas. I feel as though I’ve taken an intangible part of my identity and shaped it in real life. There’s a sense of alchemy and magic to that.”
Sophia Hotung
Writer and Illustrator
Our Urban Explorer
Could you please introduce yourself to our guests?
Hello! My name is Sophia Hotung. I’m a Eurasian Hong Konger, writer, and illustrator, best known for creating an art collection and books called The Hong Konger. I’m also a disability advocate and speaker, who writes and talks predominantly about chronic illnesses and invisible disabilities.
How did you start your journey as an artist?
I was diagnosed with my first autoimmune disease when I was 16, and by the time I was 24, I had seven chronic illnesses. This was a rough period in my life, during which I couldn’t continue my corporate career in IT. I was bedridden and panicking about what I was going to do with the rest of my life with all my disabilities. When Christmas rolled around, my mum gifted me an iPad. On it, I learned to draw and started making memes and joke doodles. One of those “jokes”, was a parody of a New Yorker magazine cover. It gained popularity on social media to the extent that I started making a whole series called The Hong Konger. Off the back of The Hong Konger, I launched an art and writing career from bed.
Your artwork is captivating and showcases a beautiful and vibrant side of Hong Kong. Where did you find inspiration for your works?
If I had to pin down three influences that inspire my work, they would be: childhood memories of growing up in Hong Kong. The photos I take while walking (or rolling with my rollator) through Hong Kong, and Literature.
How do you think you fit into the term “Urban Explorer”?
Given my disabilities, I’m not the most mobile person, but I think exploration can be cerebral as well as ambulatory. I love Hong Kong history and my favourite thing to do is study the same physical spaces around our city and overlay them in my mind with events that happened before.
What does a day in the life of Ms. Sophia Hotung look like?
My life is split into two. Since I am disabled, it’s not sustainable for me to always be “on”, so for 10 months in every year, I retreat to San Francisco. My husband is from Northern California and, when I’m there, I have a very slow and gentle routine. I wake up late on account of my myalgic encephalomyelitis, work on my creative projects and commissions while everyone sleeps in Hong Kong, then, at around 4pm, when Hong Kong wakes up, I take video call meetings to run my business based in Hong Kong. I also do experimental treatments through UCSF and Stanford.
When I am in Hong Kong (usually in March and November/December), my schedule goes nuts. No day is the same. I’m running errands, catching up with friends, hosting book signings, giving school talks, and doing all the in-person activities that I couldn’t do while I was abroad. So, what I’ve started doing is chronicling my days in video diaries on my Instagram and website in a series called Hong Konger Artist Diaries.
It’s an unconventional schedule, having two lives in two countries, but there’s something very productive and persephonic about it that I enjoy and thrive on.
The Whimsical World of Sophia Hotung
You are such a creative soul. What do you love most about creating art and writing?
passion or calling but a compulsion. I resonate with that. Creating art and writing scratches an itch under my skin. It’s satisfying to form literal creations out of nothing but ideas. I feel as though I’ve taken an intangible part of my identity and shaped it in real life. There’s a sense of alchemy and magic to that.
Out of all your works, do you have a favourite piece?
This is like asking a parent to pick her favourite child! I suppose if I had to pick, I’d say my new book The (Unlikely) Hong Konger. More on this in the next answer…
Congratulations on your new book “The (Unlikely) Hong Konger”! This auto-biographical take of your life, with stunning illustrations done by you, must be a labour of love for you. Could you tell us more about this special project?
Thank you and of course! The (Unlikely) Hong Konger is actually two books in one. On the very first page, I break down its anatomy for the reader. On the odd pages are all 112 of my Hong Konger artworks that I created since 2021 while bedridden with chronic illnesses. Readers are free to browse the odd pages exclusively and pay no heed to the text on the even pages. However, should the reader be interested in the text, they’ll find the backstory behind how The Hong Konger art collection began. The story is a true story but is dramatised to read like a novel. I recount my adventures breaking into Hong Kong’s art world and discuss my contemporaneous struggles with failure, disability, the Eurasian experience, displacement, womanhood, and entrepreneurship.
How are you enjoying this journey so far and what words of wisdom would you bestow upon those who wish to follow in your footsteps?
It’s going pretty swimmingly thank you! No complaints over here. As far as advice goes, I actually threw a juicy appendix into the final part of The (Unlikely) Hong Konger book. In the appendix, titled Tidbits for Creative Compatriots, I share advice for creative blocks, templates for contracts, what’s in my “business bag”, and more. So, my practical advice can be found there. As far as “wisdom” goes, I would say that there is no right or wrong way to do anything creative.
What else can we expect from you coming up in 2025?
Given the nature of my work, stasis often drags out interminably and then suddenly it’s go-go-go when an opportunity strikes. I always have a swathe of applications for various opportunities pending and never know when one will land. So, all I can say is, stay tuned. You’ll know what’s coming up when I do! In the background however, there are always the corporate projects I take on. I work with Hong Kong brands throughout the year to provide visuals and writing that elevate their messages.
Travel With Purpose
Where do you find inspiration for travel?
Given my disabilities, travel can be tricky. My chronic illnesses are neurological and digestive meaning that a good-time travel spot to me has celiac-safe food and wheelchair-accessible spaces. I often will find inspiration through word of mouth from other disabled friends.
Any destinations on your bucket list?
I went to Italy as a child but don’t remember it well. However, I’ve heard it’s a haven for celiac-safe eats, so I’m desperate to go back for a gluten-free food pilgrimage (if my husband doesn’t mind carrying me and my rollator around the bumpy streets). One of my favourite things to do since moving to San Francisco, however, is doing short day trips with my husband and our dogs. We load up into the car, drive north, south, or inland and explore little towns. I like that some of the best adventures can happen in your own backyard.
What three words would you use to describe Hong Kong?
Resilient, paradoxical, moving