The 11th Hong Kong Affordable Art Fair (Art Fair) officially opened yesterday at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, bringing together 97 local and international galleries and exhibitors, with over half of them being international exhibitors from around the world, such as Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, Australia, the United States, Peru, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, and Cyprus, presenting over a thousand carefully selected contemporary art pieces.
Since its establishment, the art fair has been committed to promoting and supporting the art ecosystem, cultivating emerging and established artists through various projects and collaborations. This year’s art fair is themed “Dare to Appreciate, Dare to Collect,” with all exhibited artworks priced at HK$100,000 or below, allowing participants to easily become first-time art collectors and bring artworks from around the world back home.
Further reading:
- Afa Lee – Exploring Art City with Inner Child
- Inside the walled village, outside the walled city, analyzing the five highlights of “The Siege of Kowloon Walled City,” experiencing the nostalgia of the 1980s!
- Korean version of the brilliant empire! Netflix’s “Rich in Korea” Aren Yoo only wears clothes once: you must endure it for the sake of beauty
However, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of this year’s International Art Expo, 6 creative units have been specially invited to create “special projects” large installations for the art expo, experimenting with different forms to showcase unique artistic experiences, including lens art, 3D reproduction, street graffiti, live Chinese ink painting, lightbox illustration, and even cocktail art, allowing participants to easily explore and appreciate art. Therefore, we have carefully selected four major highlights for everyone to savor together at the Affordable Art Fair 2024!
1. Street art wall with “Chicanos” design
Born in Algeria, artist Ceet Fouad creates iconic Chicanos art walls with his vibrant and harmonious classic chicken characters, embodying profound emotions and personality.
His work challenges mainstream ideas, emphasizing the importance of embracing individuality and unconventional thinking. While conveying a critical message about modern society, it also satirizes the social phenomenon of people blindly following trends without recognizing their own unique personalities. For Ceet, street art graffiti, whether legal or not, serves as a medium tightly connected to social phenomena.
Barber Shop + “Neon” Hong Kong Underground Bar
“Neon” is curated by American-Taiwanese artist Jonathan Jay Lee (JJL). Inspired by the secret alleyway bars commonly found in Hong Kong, it brings the cultural essence of Sham Shui Po into this “special project.”
In the corner of the art gallery, there is suddenly a Barber Shop (a hair salon designed specifically for men), with a small door on the left side. Upon entering, you can admire the illustration works with Hong Kong scenes as the main theme by American-Taiwanese artist Jonathan Jay Lee (JJL), as well as taste Hong Kong-style cocktails designed by Kiyoshi Hoshimi-Caines, former chief sommelier and beverage director of the famous Michelin-starred restaurants YardBird and RŌNIN, such as the Egg Tart Sour and the Frozen Lemon Yuanbinzhi.
This special event is co-organized by the Hong Kong Tourism Board. Visitors can purchase tickets for this add-on experience on the Eventbrite link.
3. “Between Two Scenes | LANDSCAPE MINDSCAPE”
“Young Talent Hong Kong” showcases the artistic power of 7 emerging artists from Hong Kong.
“Young Talent Hong Kong” exhibition themed “Between Two Sceneries” curated by artist Peony Hung, showcases the creativity of 7 Hong Kong artists in 3 distinct spaces, including: Apple Cheng, Edmond Li, Irene Lee, Peony Hung, Rylee Tsang, Scott Chan, and Wallis Chung. From serene blues, quirky browns to static white rooms, works in different mediums transcend boundaries and engage in dialogue. Each room is an extension of ordinary days, capturing how past events and surrounding objects become a moment of focus, shaping a landscape in creation.
Accumulating observations in daily life, leading to reflections on oneself and others, horizontally crossing the accumulated observations in life, vertically drawing out reflections on oneself and others, everything is a world reflected in the heart.
4. “Green Bear Forest” Bear-Shaped Sculpture
Created by Seoul-based artist ChanBoo Jung, using drinking straws as the medium for sculptural creation.
Drinking straws make it convenient for us to drink beverages daily, but once people are done using them, they are often seen as useless “waste” and thrown into the trash. Have you ever thought about the impact of these disposable straws on the Earth when you observe this situation? Artists, however, have come up with an idea to give them meaning, just like how a small seed grows into a vibrant forest. By combining colorful plastic straw fragments together, they create different shapes and symbols, much like how a chameleon changes colors. These materials were once used and casually discarded, but are now being looked at with fresh eyes and given new meaning.
Especially the randomly distributed straw stones on the ground, spreading and gathering in all directions, like awakening the image of seeds sprouting and blooming, giving new meaning to the straw.
In addition to the four major focus works mentioned above, there are many other wonderful works and various art activities.
This year, the Affordable Art Fair has collaborated with different partners to plan art experiences suitable for families and ignite the passion for art in the younger generation, including: partnering with Art Loop to organize a series of educational art tours and workshops, specially designed art immersion journeys for children aged 4 to 12, providing children with a memorable experience and sparking their interest in art. Led by professional instructors from Art Loop, children will be guided through art galleries and carefully curated projects, giving them a unique opportunity to learn to appreciate art and develop critical thinking; by exploring artworks of different styles, techniques, and themes at the Affordable Art Fair, children will gain a deeper understanding of the art world.
In addition, children also have the opportunity to create their own mini projects and showcase the finished products at the exhibition. The price for children’s guided tours and workshops is HK$250 per person, including a T-shirt, a exquisite handbook, and all workshop materials. There are four time slots available each day, with limited availability on a first-come, first-served basis.
And Venture Studios will also provide on-site family photography services during the art fair, where photos will be taken by professional photographers at the booth, and all proceeds will be donated to “Mother’s Choice”. Don’t miss out!
11th Hong Kong Affordable Art Fair
Date: May 16 – 19, 2024
Location: Hall 1E, Wan Chai Convention and Exhibition Centre
