The pandemic has changed our way of life and inadvertently created a sense of distance between people. In order to reconnect the community through art, the Lee Gardens Association, in collaboration with Hip Shing Hong, HKWalls, and Schoeni Projects, presents the “disCONNECT HK” exhibition, blending contemporary urban art with local traditional architecture. This transforms the Lee Gardens community in Causeway Bay into an art gallery, encouraging reflection and dialogue through art during the pandemic.
The “disCONNECT HK” exhibition in Causeway Bay is actually an extension of the opening exhibition “disCONNECT LDN” held in London. “disCONNECT LDN” invited 10 artists from 7 countries to create site-specific works in a Victorian brick house built in the 1850s in southwest London. As “disCONNECT LDN” concluded in the UK, the exhibition moved to 16 Pak Sha Road in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, a post-war old apartment building from the 1950s, showcasing multiple works from the London exhibition. It also invited Hong Kong artists Go Hung, Lam Lan, Wong Kwok Choi, and Wong Ting Fung to continue artistic dialogue during the pandemic, aiming to reconnect the community through art and cultural activities in this uncertain time. Selected artworks will also be exhibited at Urban Sky in Hysan Place, continuing the journey of “disCONNECT.”
The choice of location for “disCONNECT HK” in the area around Leighton Hill in Causeway Bay is actually related to the local cultural background and artistic origins. Leighton Hill’s Second Street was renovated in 1920 to become the “North Mountain Poetry Society,” which attracted Hong Kong literati and became the largest poetry society in Hong Kong in the past century. In the 1930s, Leighton Hill began to be developed, and one of the newly built roads was named after the Ming Dynasty scholar and poet Chen Baisha, which is now known as “Baisha Road,” where the “disCONNECT HK” exhibition is located. In addition, starting in 1920, the construction of the Leighton Hill Theatre, modeled after French and Italian opera houses, also became a gathering place for various performing arts and cultures. The Leighton Hotel on Hysan Avenue also introduced and exhibited works by emerging local and Chinese artists in the 1970s.
Four Hong Kong artists bring video installations, live painting, mixed media, and sculpture to explore various issues such as connection, belonging, isolation, and new technologies in the pandemic. Through art, they respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and the previous “disCONNECT LDN” exhibition. In addition to physical exhibitions in Causeway Bay and Hysan Place, “disCONNECT HK” also incorporates multimedia technology elements, along with live art production, workshops, and other activities, creating a visually stunning experience.
This exhibition also breaks the traditional exhibition model, allowing everyone to participate through online live streaming. This includes art dialogue activities, where gallery owner Angela Li, Hong Kong artist Lin Lan, Director of the Garden Association Dong Yankun, and founder of Schoeni Projects Nicole Schoeni will discuss the global pandemic’s impact on their connections with the community, as well as the challenges currently facing the Hong Kong art scene. Artist Wong Guocai will also introduce his experimental film “The Quarantine” on IGTV, and discuss the process of creating art during the pandemic with Maria Wong from HKwalls, further allowing everyone to understand this video work that reflects on the regression of civilization.
In addition, there is “disCONNECT LDN” 3D virtual guided tour, allowing you to break geographical boundaries, visit “disCONNECT LDN” in London online, experience a 3D virtual tour, view works in VR in Victorian brick houses built in the 1850s, and bring a different art experience.
Bayside Road Old Apartment Exhibition (Entry by Online Reservation)
Date: From now until November 29
Time: 12:00 pm to 8:00 pm (Wednesday to Sunday)
Location: 2-4/F, 16 Bayside Road, Causeway Bay
Hysan Place Exhibition
Date: From now until October 30
Time: 12:00 pm to 8:00 pm (Wednesday to Sunday)
Location: 9th floor, Urban Sky, Hysan Place
“disCONNECT HK” Artist Talk (Online registration required) and ZOOM
Date: October 24th (Saturday)
Time: 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM
Location: 9th Floor, Urban Sky, Hysan Place
