1. Shirley Tse
Hong Kong-born artist Shirley Tse is at the forefront of art lovers' minds this year because she is going to represent the city at the Venice Biennale, which opens in May. Tse is the first female artist to represent Hong Kong with a solo show in Venice. This recognition has been a long time coming. For decades, Tse has been making thought-provoking installations that often incorporate sculpture, photography and video.
Many of her earlier works explored the role of plastic in contemporary society, with some of them made from polystyrene boxes and other packaging materials. But over time, Tse's work has expanded to consider on broader ideas of plasticity, reflecting on how people are shaped by their environments.
Tse is now based primarily in Los Angeles, where she’s a faculty member of the CalArts School of Art.