FRAN CHANG

Drawing on her Taiwanese heritage and early interests in astrophysics, Chang’s works often play with the boundaries between nature and imagination. Engaging with themes of migration, transformation, and solitude, Chang’s works are included in major collections and represented by respected galleries internationally.

Early Years and Background

Born in 1990 in Poços de Caldas, Brazil, to Taiwanese parents, Chang was exposed to cross-cultural ideas from an early age. She studied Visual Arts at Faculdade Belas Artes in São Paulo and later deepened her research interests in astrophysics and astronautics at the Federal University of Santa Catarina. This blend of scientific inquiry and cultural memory underpins her artistic approach, fostering an enduring interest in the liminal, fragile spaces that lie between belonging and longing.

Fran Chang’s Artworks and Themes

Working primarily with acrylic on silk, Fran Chang is known for the luminous, translucent quality of her paintings. Her signature works feature water, icy expanses, and shifting atmospheres, referencing both traditional Asian aesthetics and ephemeral experiences of migration.

The absence of human figures or explicit narrative in her artworks intensifies their meditative quality. Notable series, for example, include ‘Hear the Wind Sing’ shown in her first exhibition in France at Bremond Capela in 2025. The idea for the series, and the exhibition which shared the same name, originated from an intimate anecdote: a friend telling her how her grandfather used to enjoy listening to the wind in the evenings by the window. This attention to what is present and what is absent became a guiding thread in her work. The title, borrowed from Haruki Murakami’s first novel, reflects a desire to anchor oneself in simple elements as a way of staying present in the face of uncertainty.

Luisa Strina announced representation of the artist in 2025.

Select Solo and Group Exhibitions

• Hear the Wind Sing, Bremond Capela, Paris, 2025
• On Ma, Galeria Pedro Cera, Lisbon, 2024
• One Must Leave the Island in Order to See the Island — Kabinett, Art Basel Hong Kong, 2025
• Sharp love on a silk chessboard, ZONA MACO, Mexico City, 2022
• ABERTO 3, Casa Tomie Ohtake, São Paulo, 2024

Awards and Accolades

• Arte como Respiro public award, Itaú Cultural, 2020
• Collections: Saint Louis Art Museum; Museu de Arte do Rio

Fran Chang FAQs

Ocula | 2025