Art Basel announces key highlights of its upcoming show in Hong Kong, including details of its expanded show sectors Encounters and Kabinett, as well as ambitious on-site and citywide programming
- Art Basel Hong Kong’s programming will further deepen the show’s strong dialogue with its host city and region, presenting a kaleidoscopic array of projects both at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) and beyond
- Encounters, the curated sector dedicated to large-scale projects, will comprise 16 artworks, 11 of which were made especially for the fair; as part of the sector, an off-site installation by celebrated Australian artist Daniel Boyd will be on view at Pacific Place, supported by Swire Properties, Official Partner of off-site Encounters
- Kabinett, the sector featuring thematic presentations within participating galleries’ booths, will comprise 33 projects – the highest number in the fair’s history – with a strong emphasis on historical and contemporary solo presentations from Asia
- Free to the public, the Conversations and Film programs will both take place in a dedicated auditorium at the HKCEC, offering audiences a unique opportunity to participate in thought-provoking discussions and enjoy artist films in one place; furthermore, Conversations will tour to Mainland China prior to the show with off-site events in Shanghai and Guangzhou starting in January
- Co-commissioned by Art Basel and M+ and presented by UBS, a site-specific ‘architectural film’, ‘Sparrow on the Sea’ by artist and filmmaker Yang Fudong will be featured on the M+ Facade from March 22, 2024, creating a captivating artistic experience for visitors and locals alike
- Art Basel Hong Kong, whose Global Lead Partner is UBS, will take place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) from March 28 to 30, 2024, with Preview Days on March 26 and 27
Bringing together 242 leading galleries from 40 countries and territories, Art Basel Hong Kong’s 2024 edition marks the show’s return to pre-pandemic scale, with 65 additional exhibitors participating in the fair compared to last year. Defined by an extraordinary diversity of artistic voices presented in the frame of its five show sectors, its Conversations and Film programs, as well as its collaborations with the city’s cultural institutions, Art Basel Hong Kong will once again serve as a platform for dialogue, discovery, and transcultural exchange, firmly anchored in Art Basel’s host city in the region.
Encounters
Encounters, curated by Alexie Glass-Kantor, Executive Director of Artspace Sydney, will feature 16 large-scale projects by artists from a broad spectrum of geographies, under the theme ‘I am a part of all that I have met'. The sector will include 11 works made especially for the fair, a yet-unmatched number since the sector’s introduction in 2013. Highlights include:
- Contingent Spheres (2020, 2022) by South Korean artist Haegue Yang, a set of two anthropomorphic ratan sculptures bridging and merging the visual codes of Binakol, a motif used in traditional textiles in the Philippines, and 1960s Op art, presented by Kukje Gallery (Seoul, Busan), kurimanzutto (Mexico City, New York) and Galerie Chantal Crousel (Paris)
- Copy of Copy of Copy of Copy (2024) by Hong Kong-based artist Mak2, an impressive yet playful installation, made especially for Art Basel Hong Kong’s 2024 edition, consisting of two fair booths connected top to top and exploring ideas of duplication, evolution, and simulation, presented by de Sarthe (Hong Kong)
- Larrakitj Forest (2024) by Australian artist Naminapu Maymuru-White, an installation made especially for the show and composed of several oblong vessels that references the funerary rites, cosmology, and pictorial tradition of the artist’s community, the Yolŋu of Northern Australia, presented by Sullivan+Strumpf (Sydney, Melbourne)
- Wind Study (Hilbert Curve) (2022-2023) by Indian artist Jitish Kallat, a suite of intricate, large-scale drawings realized with fire, wind, smoke, and ink, referencing the continuous fractal space-filling curves formulated by mathematician David Hilbert in 1891, and premiering at the show, presented by Templon (Paris, Brussels, New York)
- Friendship First (2024) by Singaporean artist Ming Wong, a sculptural installation made especially for the show's Encounters sector, composed of two semi-spheres serving as projection surfaces for archival footage relating to the use of table tennis as a diplomatic tool by the US and China since the 1970s, exemplifying the artist’s interest in the relationship between the two countries, presented by Ota Fine Arts (Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo)
Furthermore, an off-site Encounters project by Sydney-based, Aboriginal artist Daniel Boyd will be on view in Hong Kong’s Pacific Place. Boyd’s artistic creations employ dots as both a visual and conceptual element and explore themes of identity, memory, perception, and history. The project is presented by Kukje Gallery and Station (Melbourne, Sydney), and supported by Swire Properties, Official Partner of off-site Encounters.
For the full list of participating artists and galleries, please visit artbasel.com/hong-kong/encounters.
Kabinett
A record number of 33 galleries will participate in Kabinett, the sector for thematic presentations within galleries’ main booths, with a strong focus on solo projects from the Asia-Pacific region. Highlights include:
- A Thousand Plateaus Art Space (Chengdu) presenting an installation by Chinese artist Bi Rongrong, delving into the interplay between patterns from different cities and cultures, the internet, personal memories, and the artist’s surroundings
- Johyun Gallery (Busan) presenting a recent series of paintings by the late South Korean master Park Seo-Bo, showcasing the remarkable physicality, rhythm, and technique that has come to define the artist’s work
- Herald St (London) presenting acrylic and ink paintings by Hong Kong-born, London-based artist Cary Kwok, shedding light on Kwok’s cinematic exploration of Queer interaction, domesticity, and art history
- Yavuz Gallery (Singapore, Sydney) presenting new works by leading Thai artist Pinaree Sanpitak, illustrating her long-standing exploration of organic structures and materials, as well as the duality between the sacred and the profane
- Jessica Silverman (San Francisco) presenting a suite of paintings by American artist Loie Hollowell, exploring sexuality, reproduction, and spirituality
- Annely Juda Fine Art (London) presenting works on paper by Russian avant-garde artist Kasimir Malevich made between 1913 and the early 1920s, as well as works by Alexander Rodchenko, Alexandra Exter, Naum Gabo, Elena Semenova, and Gustav Klucis, all influential contributors to non-objective art
To view the full list of participating artists and galleries, please visit artbasel.com/hong-kong/kabinett.
Film
Curated by multi-media artist and film producer Li Zhenhua, the Film program will feature ten inspiring screenings and include collaborations with cultural video channel Nowness Asia, as well as Videotage, one of the region’s leading non-profit organizations dedicated to video art. Running from March 27-30, the program will take place on-site at the HKCEC. Highlights include:
- A New Old Play (2021) by Chinese filmmaker Qiu Jiongjiong, the story of a prominent clown reminiscing about his life, set against the backdrop of China’s tumultuous 20th-century history, presented by Star Gallery (Beijing)
- Sex (2021), German artist Anne Imhof’s first major film-based work, composed of footage created during the first chapter of her eponymous performance cycle at Tate Modern in March 2019 and characterized by the artist’s unmistakable, dark visual language, presented by Sprüth Magers (Berlin, London, Los Angeles, New York)
- Sorry for the Late Reply (2021), a single-channel animation created by Hong Kong artist Wong Ping, drawing from his personal stories and journals, delving into the aspirations and anxieties experienced by the city’s inhabitants, presented by Kiang Malingue (Hong Kong)
- Thread Routes - Chapter IV (2014) by South Korean artist Kimsooja, a 16 mm film that reflects on the connections between textiles – a material Kimsooja is particularly known for using in her practice – and other mediums and disciplines, such as performance and architecture, presented by Axel Vervoordt Gallery (Hong Kong, Antwerp)
- Useless Sacrifice (2022-2023), a film by Swedish artist Anna Uddenberg, in which she investigates the tropes of her practice such as body culture, spirituality, class, taste, and the influence of new technologies on self-expression, presented by Kraupa-Tuskany Zeidler (Berlin)
The Film program is freely accessible to the public. To view the full list of participating artists and galleries, please visit artbasel.com/hongkong/film.
Conversations
Unfolding in the HKCEC’s auditorium from March 27-30 and curated by Stephanie Bailey, writer, editor, and Art Basel’s Asia Content Advisor and Editor, Conversations will offer attendees a platform for dynamic dialogues between key members of the worlds of arts and culture. The program features 11 panels and speakers from over 15 countries and territories. Highlights include:
- An audience with Haegue Yang, ahead of the artist’s upcoming solo exhibition at London’s Hayward Gallery, moderated by curator Yung Ma
- A discussion between legendary Japanese artists Shinro Ohtake and Takashi Murakami, organized with Art Week Tokyo, in which they will reflect on their relationships with Japan’s shapeshifting capital city
- A panel discussion moderated by Tai Kwun’s Head of Art, Pi Li, where collectors including Uli Sigg will share their approaches to building era-defining collections of contemporary Chinese art
- A roundtable on decolonizing cultural institutions in the 21st century with Zeitz Mocaa Chief Curator and Executive Director Koyo Kouoh, M+ Museum Director Suhanya Raffel, and patron Durjoy Rahman, founder of the Durjoy Bangladesh Foundation, chaired by Eugene Tan, Director of National Gallery Singapore
- A special, live-taped edition of Crit Club, a contextual performance conceived by artist and meme-maker Cem A., aka. freeze_magazine, inviting artists Kara Chin, Jitish Kallat, Wang Tuo and Steph Huang to debate an impossible question: What’s more important, artists or artworks?
Furthermore, three off-site Art Basel Hong Kong Conversations – in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong – have been added to this year’s program.
- Presented at the UBS Greater China Conference on January 8, 2024, a discussion led by Angelle Siyang-Le, Art Basel Hong Kong’s Director, delved into the digital art market in China with artists Lu Yang and Wang Ziquan, gallerist Simon Wang, and Sylvia Wang, Asia Lead for TR Lab
- A Conversation co-hosted in Guangzhou by Art Basel and the Hong Kong Tourism Board on February 27, 2024 will explore the evolution of the Greater Bay Area’s arts ecosystem. Moderated by M+ Sigg Curator, Dr. Wu Mo, the discussion will bring together Chen Tong, artist and founder of Libreria Borges, Guangzhou, Wang Shaoqiang, Director of Guangdong Museum of Art, Shao Shu, Executive Director of He Art Museum, as well as Lin Aojie, artist of ShanghART Gallery and director/co-founder of Canton Gallery
- A Conversation hosted in Hong Kong by Asia Art Archive on February 29, 2024 will bring together emerging artists and curators to discuss their efforts to create alternative sites such as Tomorrow Maybe and New Park, as well as structures that foster art in Hong Kong. The discussion will be moderated by Eunice Tsang, Founder of Current Plans
On-site Conversations are freely accessible to the public. The full Conversations program will be available shortly on the Art Basel website.