Your Go-To Guide to Events and Exhibitions at Art Basel in Hong Kong 2017

From a musical workshop to a show on gender fluidity, here's what to see.

Cao Fei, Derivation Blurs the Virtual and Physical Worlds (2017). Courtesy of Cao Fei and Vitamin Creative Space.

1. Art Basel in Hong Kong
Featuring some 241 international galleries—more than 10 percent of them first-timers at the fair—as well as lively programs of films and talks, along with focused sections for emerging artists and large-scale installations, the fair anchors a busy week, complete with satellite fairs and special programming at the city’s cultural venues.

Art Basel in Hong Kong takes place at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai. Hours for the invitation-only private preview are Tuesday, 3 to 8 p.m. and Wednesday, 1 to 5 p.m.; vernissage is Wednesday, 5 to 9 p.m.; public hours are Thursday, 1 to 8 p.m., Friday, 1 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Advance tickets start at 150 HKD (about $19 US).

Art Central Hong Kong. Photo: Art Central Hong Kong via Facebook.

2. Art Central
The premier satellite fair to Art Basel places a strong emphasis on emerging art and emphasizes galleries from the Asia-Pacific region.

Art Central takes place at the Central Harbourfront, Tuesday, March 21 to Saturday, March 25. Hours are Tuesday-Wednesday, 12 to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 12 to 9 p.m.; Friday, 12 to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. One-day tickets start at 110 Hong Kong dollars (about $14 US).

A visitor to ".com/.cn," at the K11 Foundation's pop-up space.

A visitor to “.com/.cn,” at the K11 Foundation’s pop-up space.

3. MoMA PS1 and K11 Art Foundation “.com/.cn” at K11 Art Foundation Pop-up Space
The first collaborative venture by New York’s MoMA PS1 and Hong Kong’s K11 Art Foundation launches with an exhibition curated by MoMA PS1 director Klaus Biesenbach and chief curator Peter Eleey. The show examines regional differences in the digital ecosystem and its effects on contemporary art; it includes artists such as Darren Bader, Cao Fei, Lauren Owens, Li Ming, Liang Wei, Lin Ke, Liu Shiyuan, Miao Ying, Oliver Payne, Sondra Perry, Wang Xin, and Anicka Yi.

The K11 pop-up gallery is located at Costco Tower, 33 Wing Lok Street, Sheung Wan. The exhibition is open March 21–April 30, daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

3. “Takeshi Murata: Infinite Doors” at Empty Gallery
The artist’s first solo exhibition in Asia, the show is a retrospective look at the Japanese-American artist’s moving-image work from 2004 to 2016. The artist is known for his exploration of digital image culture, influenced by a mixture of psychedelic imagery, video games, and horror films. Founded by New York-born shipping heir Stephen Cheng, the gallery is the opposite of the standard white cube: everything inside is black.

Empty Gallery is at Grand Marine Center, 3 Yue Fung St, Tin Wan. The exhibition runs March 22–May 27, and the gallery is open Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Wang Xin, <i>Artists Can Tell</i> (2016). Courtesy de Sarthe Gallery.

Wang Xin, Artists Can Tell (2016). Courtesy de Sarthe Gallery.

4. “Group show: Reversal Ritual” at de Sarthe Gallery
Marking the unveiling of its new exhibition space in Wong Chuk Hang, which covers the entire 20th floor of the Global Trade Square building, de Sarthe Gallery presents a group show featuring five promising mainland Chinese and Hong Kong artists: Liang Ban, Mak Ying Tung, Tong Kunniao, Wang Xin, and Xin Yunpeng.

De Sarthe is at 21 Wong Chuk Hang Road. The exhibition runs March 23–May 13, and the gallery is open Tuesday–Saturday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

5. Music Workshop with Tarek Atoui at Para-Site
This workshop is part of Para-Site’s group exhibition “Soils and Stones, Souls and Songs,” exploring themes of artistic and cultural production in contemporary life. Artist and electroacoustic composer Tarek Atoui will lead the workshop, employing percussion, string, and wind instruments in this collaborative work.

Para-Site is at the Wing Wah Industrial Building, 677 King’s Road, Quarry Bay. The workshop takes place Tuesday, 21 March, 2017, 10–11:30 a.m.

Tim Eitel, Reflector (2015). Courtesy Galerie EIGEN + ART Leipzig/Berlin.

Tim Eitel, Reflector (2015). Courtesy Galerie EIGEN + ART Leipzig/Berlin.

6. Artist Talk with Tim Eitel
This talk is presented on the occasion of “YELLOW SKY,” the first Hong Kong exhibition for contemporary artist Tim Eitel, at the Goethe-Institut. In conversation with Florian Knothe, director of the museum and art gallery of the University of Hong Kong, the German painter will discuss his techniques and influences, as well as his part in the new Leipzig school.

The talk takes place Thursday, March 23, at 7 p.m., at the Hong Kong Arts Centre, 2 Harbour Rd, Wan Chai.

Film still of Chen Kaige's Farewell My Concubine (1993). © Tomson (Hong Kong) Films Co. Ltd.

Film still of Chen Kaige’s Farewell My Concubine (1993). © Tomson (Hong Kong) Films Co. Ltd.

7. “Ambiguously Yours: Gender in Hong Kong Popular Culture”
M+ presents a large-scale multimedia exploration of popular culture in Hong Kong through the lens of gender ambiguity and identity. The program delves into representations of androgyny and gender fluidity ranging from the 1980s through today, juxtaposing works from the fields of fashion, photography, film and graphic design. This ambitious project incorporates a range of media to examine the multifaceted expression of the “self,” while encouraging a continued dialogue between popular culture and the realm of art and design.

The exhibition is on view through May 21 at the M+ Pavilion, West Kowloon Cultural District, Wednesday-Sunday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m.


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