Dates
2010 (death date)
Biography
Pamela So (d.2010) was a Scottish artist whose practice examined her own identity and cultural heritage and the continual effect of colonisation on the national identity of the UK. Her works were based on extensive research into domestic and cultural histories in museums and libraries or working with a particular group of people. In her early works, So employed the manipulative qualities of photography to re-interpret and re-present history based on her Scottish/Chinese background. Her work was often made for specific locations and their histories, the intuitive response to these sites was an important part of her art practice.
So was born in Glasgow, Scotland. She graduated from Glasgow University and afterwards from the Environmental Art Department at Glasgow School of Art (1998). She died in 2010 following a short illness.
She was selected for the Autograph Residency at Syracuse University, NY (2002). In 2003 she took part in the
Ten Thousand Li exhibition which toured various sites in the UK. Solo shows at the Crawford Arts Centre, St Andrews and the Collins Gallery, Glasgow (2005/2006), resulted in a publication of her work,
Re:Collections.
Pamela So had a long connection with the Chinese Arts Centre. In 1998, she took part in the group show
Golden Emporium, a selling exhibition which featured works of both traditional and contemporary UK based artists of east Asian heritage. In 2000 her solo show
Past Perfect, Perfect Sense was held at the Centre as part of the
New Commissions Scheme. So also took part in a
Breathe residency at the Centre in 2005. She was also one of the artist who took part in the
Boutique exhibition which marked the 21st anniversary of the Centre. She also took part in the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery which was co-organised by the Centre. So also facilitated workshop at the Centre including a '
tea carpet' and '
making paper garments' workshops.
Type
artist
Nationality
British
Source
- 'Pamela So' Fife Contemporary [accessed 2017/08/22].
- Digital File: Pamela So catalogue essay.doc, 2006 Mar, David Hancock. Courtesy of the CFCCA Archive & Library, (GB3451/OC/D/2102/324).