BIOGRAPHY

Norm Yip was born and raised in Canada by Chinese parents. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree (cum laude) in 1984 at the University of Saskatchewan and his Bachelor of Architecture degree in 1989 at the University of Toronto. In 1994, he moved to Hong Kong where he worked as a project architect for Wong & Tai Associates Ltd and RTKL International Ltd before pursuing his greater interest in art and photography.

In 1999, he co-founded the art collective Meli-Melo Artists Alliance (MMAA) where he curated several exhibitions with artists such as Gavin Tu, Neung and Oksana Movchan from Hong Kong, Thailand and Canada.

Shortly thereafter, he formed his own photography company Norm Yip Photography, in addition to Studio 8, a semi-public photographic and art space located in the district of Sheung Wan — where he hosted private and selected exhibitions in all three mediums of photography, painting and graphite.

As a photographer, Norm’s work has appeared in HK Magazine, WHERE, Global Investor and American Express’ Centurion magazine. Celebrities he has photographed include Zhang Yimou, Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Destiny’s Child and Korean pop-star Rain.

Norm is recognised for his fine art photographs of beautiful and sensuous Asian males. His work has been featured in ‘2Blue’ and ‘Dreamboys 2’, both special edition of Blue magazine, known for its excellence in fine art male photography. His photography of Asian men has been subject to thesis graduate work in RMIT (Australia) for it’s cultural impact sociologically and culturally.

Norm has taught photography courses at The Open University of Hong Kong and has been a guest lecturer at Hong Kong Art School. In addition, he has been invited by the Cathay Camera Club to act as a judge in their monthly photography competitions.

Norm provides a unique approach to the way he sees, whereby both his interest in fine art, and his training in architecture and design, are intertwined in his work, whether it be photography, painting or drawing — fusing both western and eastern concepts both conceptually and visually. 

Norm Yip by Josh Lee

Photo by Josh Lee