Tja Ling Hu (b. 1987) is a visual artist and illustrator. In 2017 she won the prestigious Fiep Westendorp Stimuleringsprijs with a project depicting her family’s journey from China to the Netherlands between the 1930s and 1970s. Whereas for her family it was a quest in the hope of a better life, for Tja Ling her Chinese heritage was a quest for her own identity.
Tja Ling takes you along into her world of thoughts that manifests itself in a surrealistic, dreamlike and sometimes gloomy way. With her distinctive, fine lines and soft pencil strokes she invites you to literally enter her world: it is only when you get closer that you get in contact with the details. Then, the work becomes intimate and personal. It shows the connections between her Chinese heritage and upbringing, which she tries to understand better through the creation of her artworks.
Tja Ling’s work has been shown in various galleries, museums and art fairs, such as Art on Paper (Amsterdam) and museum Lam (Lisse). In addition to her work on paper she also makes murals at home and abroad.
Website: TJA LING 嘉玲
Instagram: @tja_ling
for the Royal Delft Museum newsletter