Bank of China tower in mist, Hong Kong, 30 January 2005 Photograph

David Clarke was born in Somerset, England, and studied in London. He has lived in Hong Kong since 1986. An art historian as well as a photographer, he is currently Professor in the Department of Fine Arts of the University of Hong Kong. Clarke has written about art in China, Europe and America, and has had a particular engagement with Hong Kong and its culture, expressed through both his writing and his photographic work. Clarkes artworks have been widely exhibited, both in Hong Kong and overseas. Two books of his photos have been published, both by Hong Kong University Press: 'Reclaimed Land: Hong Kong in Transition' (2002) and 'Hong Kong x 24 x 365: A Year in the Life of a City' (2007).

David Clarke obtained his Ph.D. in art history from the Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London, in 1983. He is a Professor in the Department of Fine Arts of the University of Hong Kong, where he has worked since 1986.

Clarke is the author of a number of books, including 'Modern Art: A Graphic Guide' (Camden Press, 1987), 'The Influence of Oriental Thought on Postwar American Painting and Sculpture' (Garland Publishing, 1988), 'Art and Place: Essays on Art from a Hong Kong Perspective' (Hong Kong University Press, 1996), 'Modern Chinese Art' (Oxford University Press, 2000), 'Hong Kong Art: Culture and Decolonization' (Reaktion Books, 2001, Duke University Press, 2002), and 'Reclaimed Land: Hong Kong in Transition' (Hong Kong University Press, 2002). His most recent sole-author book is 'Hong Kong x 24 x 365: A Year in the Life of a City' (Hong Kong University Press, 2007). Clarke has published articles in a wide range of journals (including Art Journal, Art History, Public Culture, Third Text, Art AsiaPacific, American Studies, The American Journal of Semiotics, and Oriental Art), as well as contributing to many other multi-authored academic publications. Clarke is the founder and academic director of the Hong Kong Art Archive (~hkaa/).

Clarke has served as External Moderator of the Strategic Planning Group of the Hong Kong Arts Development Council and as a member of its Visual Arts Committee.