Meet Chow and Lin, an artist duo whose distinct backgrounds as a photographer and an economist create a compelling synthesis of analytical precision and sensory expression. They are best known for The Poverty Line, an art project in which they calculated the daily food budget based on each country's official poverty line, purchased food within that amount, and photographed it laid out on that day's local newspaper.

In this exclusive interview, the creative and life partners discuss their evolving practice: from rigorous social research and expanding into ceramics and textiles, to embracing generative AI. Through their ongoing dialogue, we uncover the core of their artistic philosophy.

Chow and Lin, “Part of The Poverty Line – Malaysia, 2026, 58.0 x 38.7 cm each (Set of 6 works), Giclee print on archival paper (Hahnemuhle Matt FineArt Photo Rag)

You both come from entirely different career backgrounds—one as a photographer and the other as an economist. What brought you together to collaborate, and why did you choose to present your work in the form of contemporary art? Could you share the story of how your journey shifted from your personal life to your artistic practice?

Chow and Lin (C&L): When we first met as university freshmen in Singapore, we occupied seemingly opposite ends of a spectrum. We were initially attracted to each other because we were so different — almost polar opposites in our personalities, background and outlook. We were intrigued and found much to exchange, probe and debate, and our relationship deepened and grew. In a way, that captures the way we approach life and our art. As a couple, we never expected to collaborate together, yet it also feels natural in a strange way. Translating our dialogue into contemporary art allowed us to transform structured inquiry into an open-ended, sensory experience—turning abstract global currents into something human, tangible, and felt.

- Coming from different fields of expertise, how do you feel your respective perspectives complement (or perhaps collide with) each other during the process of creating a single piece of work?

C&L: Working as a pair means stepping into a continuous, living dialogue. When we are working on our art projects, we will often debate and collide on the research and findings. And eventually we will usually come up with a viewpoint that is a combination of our world views. There is as much listening as there is speaking. Communication, openness and mutual respect are important for our art and our relationship.

Chow and Lin, “Decentralized Value Systems 2026 0009”, 2026, Ready-made Table Lamp and Ceramic Capsules, size varied

- Do you research data from the very beginning with the explicit purpose of creating an artwork? Or does the impulse to express it through art emerge later, as you immerse yourselves in the data during your research? Please tell us about the behind-the-scenes process of how raw data is transformed into art.

C&L: Our creative process is an endless exercise in curiosity. We immerse ourselves widely—in news, history, popular culture, economics.. and the active rhythms of daily life, collecting fragments of thought. We maintain an ever-growing archive of notes, questions, and observations. Most seeds remain dormant, but occasionally, an idea persists, demanding to be nurtured. We allow these concepts to sit in time, testing their weight until the underlying system reveals its form. The artwork itself is simply the physical shadow cast by a long, unseen period of mental cultivation.

- While your practice has previously centered on photography as a two-dimensional medium, you have expanded your expression into new materials, such as ceramics and textiles, for this exhibition. What led to this shift, and what elements did you find in these physical materials that could not be fully captured through photography alone?

C&L: Our art has always revolved around concepts and questions, and our initial expression was through photography. Photography is a language which frames a view point, while conveying realism and the sense of being in the moment. It has a history of about 200 years, and humans are still finding new ways to interpret this medium. At the same time, we have been exploring other materials which have a much longer history tied in to human development. Every material carries its own memory, weight, and history. Ceramics speak to earth, labor and permanence. Textiles evoke structure, intimacy and domesticity. Our concepts have stayed consistent, but interpreting them through different materials will give the works different and layered meanings.

Close up

- Your new series Blink tackles the highly contemporary subject of generative AI. Compared to the statistical data or physical everyday objects you have handled in your past projects, do you find AI to be an accessible subject to capture as artists, or is it something entirely distinct and elusive?

C&L: To be honest, we are not comfortable with AI’s current dominance and speed of progress. But such technological revolution is what made painters evolve when photography was introduced 200 years ago. Photography “killed” painting's duty to mirror the world, so painting reinvented itself to interpret, distort, and express it. This is how we now perceive the beauty of the Monet’s, Renoir’s, Van Gogh’s, Matisse’s and post impressionism paintings. So there will be existential questions on the form of art, even comparing human art with AI-created works. We welcome all these critical questions about how art and humanity are created from intentionality, historical resonance, and empathy.

Chow and Lin, “Wheat Flour Swallow” 2025, Heat Transfer Print and Computerised Embroidery on Canvas, 95.0 x 130.0 cm

- What inspired you to involve your children in the creative process for this project, and what kind of inspiration did you draw from working with them?

C&L: We joke that our art came before our children, so our art practice is our first “child”.

Our children have grown up visiting art museums and exhibitions with us, and while they may not hold the same interest as us, they have always shown support. As parents, we listen to their feedback and questions. We always find it intriguing that our viewpoints differ widely, just the same as how we feel our worldview is different from our parents’. We see art sometimes as being something serious, but ultimately it needs to be fun. Like the relationship between a parent and a child. To be able to engage with our children on our art projects as they grow up is a joy, and a privilege.

Chow and Lin, Part of “The Poverty Line - Malaysia 202671202”, 2026, Giclee print on archival paper (Hahnemuhle Matt FineArt Photo Rag), 58.0 x 38.7 cm each (Set of 6 works)

- There seems to be an evolution in the starting point of your work—shifting from a research-based, objective lens looking at society (as seen in The Poverty Line) toward a more personal expression that projects your own inner worlds and family. How do you feel your perspectives and artistic interests have changed over time?

C&L: Our projects and motivations have always started from personal experiences and deliberations. We initially chose to present our thinking through the visual method, while remaining obscured behind the works. As we develop our practice further, we realise that it is inevitable to separate the art from the artist. Our shift to also examine ourselves as vessels through which information and life experiences journey through is a continuum of understanding humanity. Amidst this inward turn, our core impulse remains unchanged: an enduring curiosity regarding societal structures and the human condition.

The work of Chow and Lin sits at the intersection of cool, data-driven observation and sensory expression, quietly posing questions that cut to the heart of social structures. Whatever form their practice takes, it is always rooted in the same two things: an insatiable curiosity and an ever-evolving dialogue between two people. Their latest work can be experienced at Counterweight: The Systems of Two | A Two Duos Exhibition Curated by Tamares Goh, on view at Whitestone Gallery Singapore.

Counterweight: The Systems of Two