[Press Release]
16-17 November 2018
Asia Society Hong Kong Center
The 2018 Art Symposium presented by the Hong Kong Art Gallery Association (HKAGA) and Asia Society Hong Kong Center will be held on Friday 16th to Saturday 17th November. The theme of the Symposium is “Looking Up: Remapping Hong Kong’s Art Scene in the Era of New Connectivity and Ruptures”. The Art Symposium has become one of the major events in the Hong Kong and international art calendars.
Registration for the Art Symposium has already begun and those interested should register now on the HKAGA website: http://www.hk-aga.org/hong-kong-art-week-2018/art-symposium/ to secure seats. The Art Symposium is open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Art Symposium is the climax and core event of HKAGA’s vibrant Hong Kong Art Week which runs from the 9th to 17th November. Now in its 6th year, Art Week offers art lovers a diverse programme which also features artist talks and studio visits, as well as a wide range of art exhibitions presented by HKAGA member galleries. The event highlights the essential role played by Hong Kong’s galleries in the city’s art ecology. Full details of Hong Kong Art Week can be found on a special website: www.hkartweek.org
Fabio Rossi, Vice-President, HKAGA and Willem Molesworth, Director, Annual Events and South Island Liaison, HKAGA, who are in change of the talks programme at the 2018 Art Symposium, said: “This year’s HKAGA symposium addresses some of the most pertinent issues facing the art world today. Tectonic shifts are underway which alter how and why we exhibit art, communicate with each other, and do business. It is our responsibility to discuss these changes and our line-up of internationally recognized artists, museum directors, curators, gallerists, journalists, academics, and collectors offers invaluable insight.”
Over the past decade, Hong Kong has developed not just as the centre of art business in Asia, but as a global art hub. Today, Hong Kong hosts Asia’s premier international art fairs, auction houses and galleries. With London and New York, it has become one of the top three art centres in the world. The development of West Kowloon Cultural District and its contemporary art museum M+, as well as Tai Kwun in Central, will further contribute to Hong Kong’s significance as a world art hub.
The HKAGA Art Symposium examines the different facets of Hong Kong’s dramatic rise as well as the challenges it will face in the future. Four talk sessions led by renowned international and local art experts address some of the most pressing topics for the future of the visual arts in Hong Kong.
Opening the Art Symposium on Friday, 16th November, internationally renowned Mexican-born art curator, critic and historian, and Chief Curator of the 12th Shanghai Biennale, Cuauhtémoc Medina, will speak about China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative which will undoubtedly transform trade and cultural relationships, including the art world.
Increased global interest in Asian art in the past few decades has radically changed the way in which the West views this previously overlooked region. In the 2nd talk on Friday, Boon Hui Tan, Director of the Asia Society Museum will ask “How are Western Museums collecting and understanding contemporary art from Asia?”
Concurrently with the #MeToo movement, female artists have been chosen to represent Hong Kong at the Venice Biennale, and the Asia Society is currently presenting an exhibition by pioneering female Chinese artist, Pan Yuliang. On Saturday, 17th November, Freya Chou, Curator of Para Site, will talk about “Female Artists in Asia”, highlighting the crucial role that women artists, curators and dealers play in the Hong Kong art scene. She will be joined by panellist speakers Ellen Pau, artist and curator; Doris Wong Wai Yin, artist; and Őzge Ersoy, Public Programmes Lead, Asia Art Archive to discuss the realities faced by women in the art world and the opportunities and challenges for the future.
Hong Kong has become the hub for the top international art galleries to enter the Asian market. Gagosian and White Cube led the way, followed more recently by Hauser & Wirth and David Zwirner. In the 2nd talk on 17th November, Magnus Renfrew, Managing Director & Founder, ARTHQ Group, will speak on “New Trends, the impact of the next wave of international gallery openings in Hong Kong and beyond.”
The Art Symposium will conclude on Saturday afternoon, 17th November with a Keynote Presentation by Tobias Berger, Head of Arts, Tai Kwun, Hong Kong’s new arts and culture centre, located at the former Central Police Station complex.
Distinguished international panellists at the Art Symposium include Victoria Sung, Assistant Curator of Visual Arts, Walker Art Center, USA; Iola Lenzi, Singapore art historian and curator of contemporary Southeast Asian art; as well as legendary gallerists such as Emmanuel Perrotin; and independent curator and writer, Sara Raza.
A Mandarin simultaneous interpretation service will be provided during the Art Symposium.
A cocktail reception on Friday evening, which is by invitation and RSVP only, is sponsored by Artsy and will feature two live performances. The first is by Chilean artist Fernando Prats who, since representing Chile at the 54th Venice Biennale, has achieved international acclaim for devising a new and deeply personal pictorial system. The artist will produce a new work from his renowned Painting of Birds series live and the resulting artwork will be donated to The Nature Conservancy in Hong Kong.
Prats records on smoked surfaces fleeting natural actions, from the movements of animals to powerful waves and seismographic vibrations. In his Paintings of Birds, the artist’s hand gives way to the free and fleeting beating of the bird’s wings making a rhythmic and majestic imprint on the smoked surface. The motion of the bird is frozen in time through a process in between abstraction and sequence photography, capturing a linear pattern of movement that embodies the organic order in nature.
Prior to the performance, Puerta Roja (Shop 3, 1/F SOHO 189, 189 Queen’s Road West, Sai Ying Pun, Western District) will host In Conversation with Fernando Prats – Nature Paintings from 6:30pm – 8:30pm on Wednesday, 14th November. *RSVP required at info@puerta-roja.com.
The second is a spoken poetry performance by REDIC, a Chicago-born artist now based in Shanghai. An assemblage and installation artist, REDIC collects discarded remnants and objects from everyday lives and through the magical alchemy of his art and vision transforms them from the ordinary to the sublime. His work is trans-disciplinary and takes the audience through a multisensory experience.
Attendees will also be able to try a VR experience by Hong Kong media artist and creative director, Desmond Leung throughout the event. Leung explores contemporary aesthetics and meaning by combining ink painting, moving image and new media into a new visual language.
Hong Kong Art Week: Special Events
Special events during Hong Kong Art Week include Art and Sandwiches at 10 Chancery Lane Gallery (G/F, 10 Chancery Lane, Central) with an art tour of Bui Cong Khanh’s exhibition every day during Art Week (except Sunday). The artist will be present on 9th and 10th November to talk about his works.
On Saturday, 10th and Saturday, 17th November, Blue Lotus Gallery will host a Meet and Greet and book signing with artist Keith Macgregor at a pop-up venue: Usagi, G/F, Wah Shin House, 6-10 Shin Hing Street, Central. The event is open to the public.
On Sunday, 11th November, Opera Gallery will organise a visit to the studio of artist Om Mee Ai, to show her special techniques and her life as a Korean artist living in Hong Kong. RSVP: hkg@operagallery.com
Wednesday, 14th November will see the Opening Reception at David Zwirner Hong Kong (5-6/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central); of an exhibition of work by Flavin, Judd, McCracken and Sandback, four American artists associated with Minimalism, one of the most significant artistic developments of the late 20th century.
On the same evening, Pearl Lam Galleries (9/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central, Central) will open Algorithm in ‘Object Recognition’, the first solo exhibition by Brazilian artist José Patrício (b. 1960) in Hong Kong. Curated by Sarina Tang, this exhibition includes a series of newly created pieces as well as a stunning floor installation, Imago Mundi, which is composed of approximately 8,000 dominoes.
On Thursday, 15th November, an exciting Art Debate: Be Bold Be Critical will be held at de Sarthe Gallery (20/F, Global Trade Square, 21 Wong Chuk Hang Road, Wong Chuk Hang), with art critics and the public discussing today’s video art and Xin Yunpeng’s solo exhibition. This event is open to the public.
On the same evening, Affinity Art (1/F, 1 Queen’s Road West, Sheung Wan) will hold an exhibition opening and artist walk-through for the artist Chi Chien. RSVP: info@affinityforart.com. Meanwhile, Galerie Huit (Room 205-208, 2/F, 334-336 Kwun Tong Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong) will host an Artist Talk & Opening Reception for artist Gordon Cheung from 6:00pm – 8:00pm. *RSVP required at rsvp@galeriehuit.com.hk.
HKAGA Exhibitions during Hong Kong Art Week
Among the many exciting exhibitions by HKAGA member galleries during Hong Kong Art Week, highlights include:
Change the Rule!: Takashi Murakami at Gagosian (7/F Pedder Building, 12 Pedder Street, Central)
Enlightenment: 1998-2018: Fong Chung-Ray at Galerie du Monde (108 Ruttonjee Centre, 11 Duddell Street, Central)
Nature Speaks at Galerie Ora-Ora (17/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central)
Zeng Fanzhi: In the Studio at Hauser & Wirth (15-16/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central)
Landscapes by Nicolas Lefeuvre at La Galerie, Paris 1839 (G/F, 74 Hollywood Road, Central)
Unstable Stillness: José Léon Cerillo, José Davia, Gabriel Rico, Martin Soto Climent at Perrotin (17/F, 50 Connaught Road Central); and Remains of the Day: Mona Hatoum at White Cube (G/F & 1/F, 50 Connaught Road Central).
The HKAGA is grateful to H Queen’s, Art Basel and Artsy for their support of the Art Week. The Artsy dedicated Hong Kong Art Week 2018 Feature Page can be visited at: www.artsy.net/feature/hong-kong-art-week-2018.
For more news on Hong Kong Art Week:
www.hkartweek.org
www.facebook.com/hkartgal
https://twitter.com/hkartgal
www.instagram.com/hkartgal/
About the Hong Kong Art Gallery Association (HKAGA)
Founded in 2012, HKAGA is a member-based non-profit organisation of established art galleries in Hong Kong. With over 50 member-galleries, the mission of HKAGA is to advance the Hong Kong art gallery community by providing one voice to its members, reaching out to the local and international art community, and helping deepen market knowledge and best practices among members. Since 2014, HKAGA has been officially recognised as a grant recipient of Hong Kong Arts Development Council for its dedication and promotion of the arts scene in Hong Kong.
About Asia Society Hong Kong Center
As an affiliate of the Asia Society global network of 13 centers, Asia Society Hong Kong Center was established in 1990. In February 2012, the Hong Kong Center established its new home in Admiralty at the former Explosives Magazine of the old Victoria Barracks. Steeped in history, cultural significance and natural beauty, the 1.3 hectares site, which houses a group of four former British military buildings, was originally built by the British Army in the mid-19th century for explosives and ammunition production and storage. Through careful conservation, restoration and adaptive re-use, this heritage site was successfully transformed into a cultural, artistic and intellectual hub in Hong Kong in 2012 and offers a broad variety of programs in the form of lectures, performances, film screenings and exhibitions to the community.
