At the age of five, Yuge Zhou 周雨歌 became a household name in China as the singer for Little Dragon Boy (小龙人), one of the most popular children’s series in Chinese TV history. Growing up in the second stage of China’s economic reform, Yuge witnessed a massive influx of migration, expansion and globalization. Yuge came to the US almost two decades ago to earn a degree in computer science and subsequently moved into video art and installations.
As she has moved between continents and from the East coast to the Midwest, she become deeply intrigued with the social interactions and transient encounters across constructed or natural spaces - the sites of our shared dreams. She documents personal and geopolitical relationships embedded within metaphorical territories and borders. Her recent projects explore the geographical, historical and emotional distance between her homeland and America—her adopted country—and broader challenges of transcending separation.
Yuge has exhibited nationally and internationally in prominent art and public venues. Her work has been featured in the New York Magazine, Hyperallergic and The Atlantic, and recently acquired by the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago and the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation. Yuge is the recipient of the 2024 Joyce Foundation Artadia Award and a 2021 Artist Fellowship Award in Media Arts from Illinois Arts Council.
In addition to her art practice, she also directs and curates the 3300-square foot 150 Media Stream, a uniquely-structured public digital art installation in Chicago. In this capacity, she has worked with over fifty media artists and cultural institutions to create innovative programming each month that engages a cross section of diverse communities.
周雨歌儿时是家喻户晓的神话儿童电视剧《小龙人》的主唱歌手。成长在中国经济改革第二阶段的过程中，雨歌目睹了大规模的迁徙、扩张和全球化浪潮。大约十六年前，她来到美国攻读计算机科学硕士学位，随后转向影像与视频装置领域。
在跨越大陆，从东海岸迁徙至中西部的过程中，雨歌对在人工或自然空间中发生的社会互动与人与人的短暂交汇产生了深厚的兴趣。她记录了隐含在象征性领土和边界中的个人和地缘政治关系。她最近的项目探索了北京与她在美国的第二故乡之间的地理、历史和情感距离，以及如何超越这些分离的更广泛挑战。
周雨歌的作品曾在国内外知名艺术和公共场馆展出，并被《纽约杂志》(New York Magazine)、《Hyperallergic》和《大西洋月刊》(The Atlantic) 等媒体专题报道。她的作品最近被芝加哥当代摄影博物馆 (Museum of Contemporary Photography) 和卡尔与玛丽琳·托马基金会 (Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation) 收藏。2024年，周雨歌荣获了乔伊斯基金会阿塔迪亚艺术大奖 (Joyce Foundation Artadia Award)。她同时拥有芝加哥艺术学院的艺术硕士以及雪城大学的理学硕士。