Hong Kong – HKETO, Brussels supports Hong Kong visual artists in Italy (with photos)

     Continuing to support and promote Hong Kong’s creative industries in Europe, representatives of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Brussels (HKETO, Brussels) attended the opening reception of the Hong Kong Pavilion at the 59th International Art Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia (the Venice Biennale) on April 21 (Venice time).

 

     Deputy Representative of the HKETO, Brussels, Mr Henry Tsoi, addressed guests and representatives of the M+ museum at the opening reception of the Hong Kong Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, venue of the exhibition “Angela Su: Arise, Hong Kong in Venice” Collateral Event. Its centrepiece is a thought-provoking new video, a pseudo-documentary titled “The Magnificent Levitation Act of Lauren O”.

 

     The exhibition, a collaboration between M+ and the Hong Kong Arts Development Council created to present the best of Hong Kong contemporary art to an international audience, is curated by Freya Chou and senior curator at Tai Kwun, Ying Kwok. 

 

     Mr Tsoi remarked that exciting developments are underway in Hong Kong as it is rapidly blossoming into a cultural hub in Asia and a thriving place of cultural exchanges between the East and the West. A multitude of independent, international galleries have opened in the city and Hong Kong is now the world’s second largest market for contemporary art.

 

      “The recent opening of M+, a museum of visual culture unique of its kind, has increased this exhilarating momentum and focused international attention on Hong Kong’s art sector. Like this intriguing exhibition at the Venice Biennale, it will contribute to spreading the reputation of our artists worldwide,” Mr Tsoi said. 

 

     At the Venice Biennale, Mr Tsoi also attended the opening reception of a sculpture exhibition launched by Hong Kong-based artist Wallace Chan, a world-renowned jewellery artist who also gained recognition for pioneering the use of titanium in art. His sculpture exhibition “Totem”, launched at the Fondaco Marcello in Venice, features an installation composed of multiple unassembled parts of Chan’s imposing, 10-metre titanium sculpture “A Dialogue Between Materials and Time, Titans XIV”.