Carer for mentally ill by day, musician and painter by night – Hong Kong man channels plight of the misunderstood into art
- See Wai-chung, also known by his stage name C Chung, tries to see things from the perspective of patients, and has had his share of emotional troubles
On his first day of work at a mental health rehabilitation centre, carer See Wai-chung recognised a familiar face among the patients – the vice-principal of his primary school.
“He acted exactly like the gentle, soft-spoken man in my memory. There was nothing wrong from his appearance,” recalls See, who later found out the man was seriously depressed.
See says the encounter spurred him to reach out to patients with respect and sincerity.
By day, See is a full-time carer for the mentally ill at a centre for the Mental Health Association of Hong Kong in Kwun Tong, teaching music and drawing to those striving to recover from depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and more.
According to its website, the association receives about 10,000 patients a year.
By night, the 32-year-old, with his floppy hair and tattoos, is very much an artist in his own right, being a musician and rock music composer, as well as a painter. He goes by his stage name C Chung, and is expecting to launch his ninth art exhibition soon.
