OUR Artist Of The Week: Tobi Wong

Born Donald Tobias Wong in 1974, Tobi Wong was a Canadian Designer and Artist.  He was known for "appropriating" work by others but coined the term "paraconceptual" to describe his work.   His education included two years at the University of Toronto, and then upon a move to New York City at Cooper Union School of Art where he earned a certificate in art.   While at Cooper, he gained a reputation for his personal style and clear message in his work.

*"Typical of his early work are installations with a large number of the same industrial product which he would stack or assemble to create architectural shapes.  Other presentations are more conceptual and question the meaning of how we consume, or what we consume today-"

In 2007, Tobi Wong described himself to The H Line: "I'm a man of extremes.  And what's the opposite of indulgence?  Denial.  I'm not going for denial.  I'm not that spiritual, so indulgence it is"

An openly gay man, Wong met his partner Timothy Dubitsky, a fellow artist in NYC.

Wong committed suicide in his NYC apartment on May 30th, 2010 at the age of 35.  With a long history of sleep disorders, it was his partner's belief that Wong had hanged himself while sleepwalking.

**Design journalist Aric Chen said of his friend and collaborator: “Tobi’s genius was his ability to capture a million different ideas in one simple gesture. The world will be a lot less interesting without him.”

*: Wikipedia
**: Tmagazine