Born in 1943 to a family of artists in Shanghai, Ming Fay was a New York-based sculptor, installation artist, and professor. His work focuses on the concept of the garden as a symbol of utopia and the relationship between people and nature. Today he is well known for his large fruit sculptures and mixed media installations. His whimsical yet culturally poignant sculptures are made out of bronze or papier-mâché and often presented in a highly sophisticated way.
After immigrating to Hong Kong in 1952, he would later attend Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio to study design in 1961. After graduating in 1965, he worked in a design studio before discovering his true passion, sculpture. He obtained a BFA degree in sculpture from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1967 and an MFA from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1970. Since then he has resided in New York and devoted himself to his sculptural work. Throughout his career, Fay has been an active teacher and has taught at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Polytechnic, Columbus College of Art and Design, Pratt Institute, the William Paterson College, and the University of Pittsburgh. In 2007 he was the recipient of the NYFA fellowship in Sculpture. Fay was a member of the Board of Directors of the Alternative Museum, The Chinese American Arts Council, The Chinese Information and Culture Center, and the Overseas Chinese Renaissance Society. He has completed numerous public art commissions including a suspended glass and steel sculpture for a residential lobby in Philadelphia, a large-scale tree sculpture in Puerto Rico, sculptural benches for New York City Staten Island Ferry Terminal.
Alisan Fine Arts began representing Fay in 1985, and since then has held five solo exhibitions for the artist. He was included in New Ink Art: Innovation and Beyond held at the Hong Kong Museum of Art in 2008 and curated by Alice King. Fay has exhibited internationally and his works have been displayed at the Whitney Museum of American Art, National Academy Museum, New York; Łódź Biennale, Poland; Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong. In 2023, he was also featured in the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s seminal exhibition on Chinese art Oneness: Nature and Connectivity in Chinese Art. His works are in the collections of many prominent museums including the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, New Jersey; He Xiangning Art Museum, Shenzhen; Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei; Hong Kong Museum of Art, M+ Hong Kong.
Another solo exhibition was planned in our New York gallery scheduled for the autumn following his untimely passing in February 2025. An important exhibition is on view at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston from June 26, 2025.
BIOGRAPHY
1943 Born in Shanghai, China
1952 Moved with his family to Hong Kong where he completed his secondary education
1965 Diploma, Columbus College of Art & Design, Columbus, Ohio, USA
1967 BFA, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri, USA
Taught in University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA1968-1969 Taught in Fine Arts Department, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
1970 MFA, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
Lecturer, Columbus College of Art & Design, Columbus, Ohio, USA1971-1974 Lecturer, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
1975 Lecturer, Hong Kong Polytechnic, Hong Kong
1978-1980 Lecturer, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, New York, USA
1981-2016 Professor in sculpture, William Paterson University, Wayne, New Jersey, USA
1982 Co-founded the Epoxy Art Group in New York, USA
1990 Workplace Program Resident, Dieu Donné, Brooklyn, New York, USA
1992 Art Partner Program, Lila-Wallace - Reader's Digest Fund, New York, USA
1994 Residency Program, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation Grant, Brooklyn Centre for
Innovative Editions, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA1995 Arts/Industry Residency Program, John Michael Kohler Arts Centre, Kohler, Wisconsin, USA
2000-2016 Visiting Professor & Artist-in-residence, Rinehart School of Sculpture, MFA Program, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
2016 Included in the gallery monograph Alisan Fine Arts 35 Years, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong
2022 Published artist monograph, Alisan Fine Arts, Hong Kong
2025 Passed away in February, New York, USA
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2025
2023
2022-2023
2021
2019
2014
2012
2010
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2000
1998
1997
1996
1994
1993
1991
1990
1989
1988
1986
1985
1984
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
20242023
2022-2023
2022
2021
2020
2020
2019
2018
2010
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1987
1980
SELECTED ART AWARDS
2008 Sculpture Award, National Academy of Art, New York, USA
2007 Fellowship in Sculpture, New York Foundation for the Arts, New York, USA
2004 National Endowment for the Arts Grant, Commission Proposal Support, USA
SELECTED PUBLIC ART COMMISSIONS
2009 NYCEDC, Lippmann Plaza, Flushing, Queens, New York, USA
2006 Redevelopment Authority of Philadelphia, Tivoli Townhouse, Pennsylvania, USA
2005 Department of Transportation and Public Works, Yauco, Puerto Rico, USA
Whitehall Ferry Terminal, New York, USA2004 MTA, Delancey/Essex Streets Station, New York, USA
General Services Administration, US Courthouse, Seattle, Washington, USA2003 Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA
1995 Percent for Art, Criminal Justice Centre, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Percent for Art, P.S. 7, Elmhurst, New York, USA1990 Petrosino Square, New York, USA
SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
New York University Library Special Collections, New York, USA