Yagi Lyota – Circuit Nov.2008 – Mujin-To Production
As well as the large galleries at Art HK, there are two other types of booths at the fair. 35 international galleries were part of Art Futures. The criteria was that the gallery had to have been established in 2004 or later, could only show one or two artists at their stand, and these artists had to be aged 35 or under.
For Asia One, the chosen 49 galleries had to be from Asia (which was loosely defined as anywhere between Turkey and New Zealand) and present a solo show from an artist of Asian origin.
For the sake of brevity (!), I’ve picked out my top four Art Futures booths and my top Asia One booth.
Cary Kwok – Qipao Hong Kong 1970s – Herald St Gallery
Herald St gallery from London put together a neat show of work by Cary Kwok. The series of drawings looked at the evolution of the Qipao (traditional Chinese dress, also known as a cheongsam) from 1910-1990 as it moved in fashion from China to the West and back to China again.
Tokyo-based gallery Mujin-To Production had a music-themed exhibition featuring work by Yagi Lyota. A miniature bus record player travelled along a track of bisected records, while SoundSphere was a ball wrapped in cassette tape which emitted eerie sounds as it was played.
Tseng Yu-Chin – Confession 2009-2011 – Nou Gallery
Tseng Yu-Chin – Confession 2009-2011 – Nou Gallery
Strange video art was playing at Taiwanese Nou Gallery. The pieces, created by Tseng Yu-Chin, resemble damaged CCTV footage, but the red tints and obscuring of the adults faces are digitally edited into the footage in post-production, allowing the viewer to focus on the innocence of the children in the piece.
The weird bubbling dust around the adults symbolising the more corrupt and damaged we become as we age.
Juree Kim – Hwigyeong Series – Gallery Em
Gallery Em from Korea showcased the work of Juree Kim. Living in Seoul, where old houses are continually being torn down to be replaced with newer versions, she was inspired to create these beautiful houses made of porcelain clay. When water is added to the base, the foundations start to crumble, but it is up to the owner of the art work as to how deteriorated they will allow the piece to become.
Juree Kim – Hwigyeong Series – Gallery Em
Kum Chi Keung – Wildlife – Galerie Ora-Ora
The reason I chose Galerie Ora-Ora’s Asia One stand as my favourite is because to me, the artist encapsulated what Hong Kong is all about. The booth is mainly filled with a 7-metre tall bamboo structure called Wildlife, which people can walk inside. This birdcage (there’s a bird towards the top of the sculpture and the traditional Chinese hook, hanging it from the ceiling of the convention centre) symbolises Hong Kong life – living in small cramped spaces and feeling confined – while also being made of a material that all Hong Kongers recognise, as there bamboo instead of metal poles is used for scaffolding. However, for me, there is even more in this work that is representative of Hong Kong. The gallery was given a small booth, so instead of trying to stretch outwards, they built upwards, reminiscent of the skyscrapers which fill the city. And negotiating the narrow space around the structure, where visitors can view smaller sculptures by the artist (he has some beautiful granite birdcages, with images of trees drilled into them), is just like squeezing through some of Hong Kong’s narrow alleyways. Something I’m going to miss doing when I return to London…
Kum Chi Keung – Green Leaves – Galerie Ora-Ora
Words: Holly Howe
