Highlights from Art Basel Hong Kong 2018
ByValencia TongArt Basel in Hong Kong 2018. Image courtesy of Art Basel.
The sixth edition of Art Basel Hong Kong has just begun! Featuring 248 galleries from 32 countries, including many of The Artling's partner galleries, the fair runs from March 27 to 31. The Artling selects some of the highlights of this year's edition.
Installation view of Boers-Li Gallery's booth. Image courtesy of Art Basel.
Installation view of Gallery Side 2's booth. Image courtesy of Art Basel.
Among all the galleries participating in this edition of Art Basel Hong Kong, there are 26 galleries with exhibition spaces in the city. Half of the 28 first-time exhibitors have gallery spaces in Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, such as Don Gallery from Shanghai and Gallery Baton from Seoul. The Galleries sector boasts a strong line-up of exhibitors, bringing to the fair artworks of different artistic mediums from the 20th to 21st centuries.
"The Autumn Colors of a Mountain Village" (1982) by Xu Bing. Insights. Image courtesy of BANK and Art Basel.
"Self Portrait (family)" (1993) by Yurie Nagashima. Insights. Image courtesy of Maho Kubota Gallery and Art Basel.
Thematic exhibitions at the Insights sector feature historical materials and highlight Asian art history, exemplified by the works by artists from Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. For instance, Chinese artist Xu Bing's pocketsize wood engravings were created during the transition from the Cultural Revolution to the reforms afterwards; Japanese artist Yurie Nagashima, on the other hand, explores her female identity through nude photographs of her family.
Project Native Informant's booth featuring artist Sophie Al Maria. Discoveries. Image courtesy of Project Native Informant and Art Basel.
"Mirror Image (For Hong Kong)" (2018) by Yoko Ono. Kabinett. Image courtesy of Galerie Lelong & Co. and Art Basel.
Discoveries spotlights emerging artists, which includes 25 galleries' solo shows in this edition. Another sector, Kabinett, showcases curated exhibitions within galleries' booths.
"Liminal Air Space-Time" (2018) by Shinji Ohmaki. Encounters. Image courtesy of Mind Set Art Center and Art Basel.
"'Mud Men' Volume II" (2017) by Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran. Encounters. Image courtesy of Sullivan + Strumpf and Art Basel.
Encounters, curated by Alexie Glass-Kantor, Executive Director of Artspace in Sydney, includes 12 large-scale installations and site specific projects, of which 9 are specifically created for this year's art fair. The curator emphasizes audience participation in this sector, either through their bodily movements or the presence the viewers in mirror reflections.
The sector features work by Indian artist Subodh Gupta (Arario Gallery), Taiwanese artist Chou Yu-Cheng (Edouard Malingue Gallery), Japanese artist Shinji Ohmaki (Mind Set Art Center), Toshikatsu Endo (SCAI The Bathhouse), Philippines-born artist duo Isabel and Alfredo Aquilizan (Yavuz Gallery) and Sri Lankan-born artist Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran (Sullivan + Strumpf), among others.
"Lu Yang Delusional Crime and Punishment" (2016) by Lu Yang, 14'37". Short Film Program. Image courtesy Beijing Commune and Art Basel.
"The War That Never Was" (2017) by Chien-Chi Chang, 15'40". Short Film Program. Image courtesy Chi-Wen Gallery and Art Basel.
Meanwhile in the Film sector, which consists of 59 film and video works, curator Li Zhenhua explores current socio-political issues. There are seven special screenings in this year's sector, which are presented at Theatre 2 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Notable screenings include Wang Xiaoshuai's "Days Gone By - Yu Hong" (2009) presented by Long March Space and Qiu Anxiong's "New Classic of Mountains and Seas III" (2013-17) presented by Boers-Li Gallery. Art Basel also collaborates with Hong Kong-based non-profit organization Videotage, as well as the Nam June Paik Center, to revisit these institutions' video art collections. In addition, short films are screened at the Hong Kong Arts Centre Cinema.
If you're interested in panel discussions about the global contemporary art world, join the Conversations program, which is curated by Stephanie Bailey. Here you'll be able to hear from artists, gallerists, curators, and collectors about the latest topics that are highly relevant to the art scene.
Browse our articles on Hong Kong Art Week 2018 to find out what other parallel art events are taking place this week!
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