Five artists from London
dal 7/3/2003 al 13/4/2003
Segnalato da
7/3/2003
Five artists from London
Para Site Art Space, Hong Kong
Did you know that Hong Kong was still last night? Did you hear anything? See anything? Did you feel it, taste it? Five artists from London try to discover Hong Kong through their senses. They will listen to her urban groans, feel her rough concrete and slick glass facades, be dazzled by the coloured neon lights, and taste hot, sour, fishy, sweet smells.
Did you know that Hong Kong was still last night?
Did you hear anything? See anything? Did you feel it, taste it?
Five artists from London try to discover Hong Kong through their senses. They
will listen to her urban groans, feel her rough concrete and slick glass
facades, be dazzled by the coloured neon lights, and taste hot, sour, fishy,
sweet smells.
For one intense week they will respond to the culturally diverse city, and make
new works (or adapt existing works) in a site-specific context, with relation to
their new environment and audience.
The urban metropolis of Hong Kong assaults the senses from the moment you enter
the city. This all engrossing, super-stimulating place blares garish neon
lights, rings of pop music mixed with traffic drones, the aromas of delicious
cooking intoxicates as one slides along the greasy concrete sidewalks. With the
aid of the senses, one is able to navigate around this urban jungle, in search
of individuality, locality and a sense of 'home'.
The artists chosen for this exhibition, consciously and unconsciously comment on
many issues surrounding contemporary fast-paced Hong Kong culture, but coming
from outside that context they bring with them fresh and alternative viewpoints.
Their works speak of dislocation, loss of individuality, pop culture and
soul-searching.
Guy Bar-Amotz uses urban sounds, transforming them into cyber pop Karaoke
experiences. Not just mere transmitters, his sleek sound systems are sculptures
that mix street music with urban noise. These are custom-made sounds emitting
from his 'Lo-Fi' system. In Hong Kong, Bar-Amotz will improvise by building a
new small-scale stereo sampling device that will incorporate the very best of
Hong Kong's Growls.
Lisa Cheung plays with urban lights reminiscent of neon signs, crafty kitsch
lanterns and nostalgic children's carnivals. The garish colours dance around
the viewers, illuminating spaces that have been forgotten and neglected. Many
of her works involve a level of interaction, whereby audience participation
disperses the authorship of the artwork into a collective experience.
Anthony Key's work deals with issues of location, or rather dislocation,
specifically of the Chinese experience. His humorous sculptures, made from
everyday objects and foods stuff, deals with cultural displacement, personally
and collectively with reference to the everyday world. The simple materials he
chooses are at once poignant and absurd. Key will attempt to re-interpret
HK's famous skyline.
Yeu Lai Mo uses foods and food culture to attract and repel. Her video is a
queasy menu of foods that are at one point delectable, now transformed into an
examination of culture and lifestyle. Like Key, she is also concerned with
issues of cultural (dis)placement and the everyday Diasporic Chinese experience,
all the while playing with our taste buds!
Finally, Olof Bjornsdottir's work touches you, quite literally. 'Beneficial
Squeeze' involves a sensuous repetitive massage action that touches another in
a way that feels at first alien and perhaps even frightening within an urban
setting. However, slowly as one relaxes in the care of her hands, one is
mentally transported to another place. The tactile nature of her works elicits
strong sensuous responses.
Art Walk 2003: 6 pm - 12 am, Fri, 7 Mar, 2003 (open to ticket-holders only).
Opening Reception: 5 - 7 pm, Sat, 8 Mar, 2003 (free admission).
Gallery hours: 12 - 7 pm (Wed to Sun) (closed on Mon, Tue & public holidays)
Catalogues available upon exhibition opening. Special offer during exhibition
period at $40 (standard price $60). 40 free copies for opening reception, on a
first come first served basis.
For more information, please contact the Para/Site Art Space: Man Wai-Kwang or
Leung Po-Shan at T: (852) 2517-4620 / e-mail: parasite@netvigator.com.
Para/Site Art Space is a registered charity art organisation, supported
financially by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council and private donations
Para/Site Art Space, 2 Po Yan Street (near 224 Hollywood Road), Sheung Wan, Hong
Kong