Cost of belonging visualized: an artist's reflection on migration

What is the exact price of belonging? For Taiwanese artist Liang-Jung Chen, the magic number is £2,885, or HK$30,643.

That is the cost of a UK indefinite leave to remain application—a hefty fee that buys much more than just a visa. It buys the validation of one's self-worth, and the end of a grueling cycle of constantly proving value to a country she's called home for years.

At Hong Kong’s Art Central in late March, Chen brought that deeply personal struggle to the public through her work, UK Indefinite Leave to Remain Application Fee (2025). 

The piece details the process of obtaining the application fee and presents numbers and color tags in Google Sheets through accelerated screen recording, which was later streamed on YouTube.

Before this project, which is one of Chen’s first moving-image and video art pieces, her practice was largely material-based, focusing on sculpture and installation.

But how did this shift come about? It traces back to eight years ago when Chen first relocated from Taiwan to London. “My whole career was a bit of an accidental response to the challenges of my immigration journey,” she said.

Relocating to another continent after university was a way for her to explore a different way of life, stepping away from her utilitarian East Asian upbringing. At the time, Chen didn't foresee transforming from an industrial designer into an artist exploring her purely creative side.

She landed in the UK on a two-year working holiday visa, picking up short-term gigs. It wasn't until her visa was coming to an expiry that she discovered the UK's artist visa route. 

Chen didn't meet the criteria initially, which requires a heavy amount of validation, including awards, exhibitions in credible institutions, and published reviews of her work. Ironically, these strict criteria pushed Chen to “take art more seriously”. She had to equip herself with the mindset of an established artist and organize exhibitions just to secure her visa.

She admits that getting the artist visa became a massive part of her identity for several years. “It felt like a validation that I was a talent worth keeping in the UK. With the artist visa, I could then apply for indefinite leave to remain,” she said.

The resulting video documents the roughly five months she spent tracking all her gigs and the hours she worked to save enough money for the application fee, all logged in a Google Sheet. Through accelerated screen recording, she converts the chromatic logic of a color-coded spreadsheet into an eye-catching animation.

Chen noted that this presentation format was inspired by the "productivity theater" phenomenon of our time—the modern Zeitgeist of trying to be as productive and efficient as possible.

Citing the famous phrase "the medium is the message," she explained that the medium demonstrates how human beings are constantly trying to micro-manage their time and tasks.

Visually, she was also very drawn to the aesthetics of the color-coded cells and the ability to insert graphics and emojis, viewing it almost like a unique alternative to design software like Adobe Illustrator.

As this work marks her first major showcase in Hong Kong, Chen expressed a unique bond with the city. “Hong Kong holds a very special place in my heart,” she said.

Since moving to London, she has met many Hong Kong migrants, from second and third generations to those who have relocated in recent years, presenting a fascinating mix of different migration journeys.

Chen said her interaction with the community opened up her eyes to what migration is, and that connection is ultimately what brought her work to Art Central this year.

She also revealed that the piece shown at the fair is just the first video of this project; she is currently in the process of making a second one, which will conclude the story of how she managed to finally submit her citizenship application.

Her focus on immigration extends well beyond her personal life into a larger context, whether it's the financial burnout within the artist circles she navigates daily, or the increasingly challenging environment for immigrants in general. 

She pointed out that the majority of her artist friends have a second job or multiple side gigs just to bear the nearly unaffordable cost of living as an immigrant in the UK.

It’s a reality rarely discussed openly in the art world, and Chen hopes her work exposes this awkward phenomenon.“When you interview an artist, they don't want to tell you they work in a cafe three days a week because they want the focus to be on their practice and their works,” she said.

Beyond the financial struggle lies a deeper structural issue hindering immigrant artists from putting down roots, especially as UK visa policies tighten amid a wave of anti-immigration sentiment.

However, Chen doesn't consider the video to be a grand "statement," as that word is too strong for her. Instead, she views it as using an everyday format to respond to a very everyday issue she was facing. 

In a divided world we live in today, she reflected on the role of her work. “That's also why I think art can be really helpful. The video tackles this situation in a very humorous and lighthearted way,” she said.

Following its Hong Kong debut, this piece will travel to the Taipei Museum of Contemporary Art in September, expanding into a more physical installation setup.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓