Housed in a massive white harbourside tent, when Art Central launched in 2015 it instantly became known as the fun, wilder cousin of Art Basel Hong Kong. Internally designed by award-winning London architecture firm Stiff + Trevillion, the fair tent is the city’s largest ever bespoke temporary structure stretching out over more than 10,000 square metres.
Its inaugural edition was a huge success attracting 30,000 visitors from Hong Kong and around the world. And this year, Art Central presented over 100 hand-selected galleries from 20 countries, with over 70 percent hailing from greater Asia, celebrating the vibrancy and diversity of the region’s contemporary art scene, represented in three main sections: CENTRAL, RISE and PROJECTS.
Showcasing the next generation of talent alongside some of the most established contemporary galleries from across Asia and the globe, this year the fair brought over 30 new names never before seen in Hong Kong.
Talking about the program, Fair Director Maree Di Pasquale said: “For the second edition of Art Central we’ve created a bold program with a distinctly Asian edge that complements our strong line-up of over 100 galleries, and aims to encourage the next level of discovery and engagement with art. From must-see installations to considered roundtable discussions, the program has been built with everyone from the art-loving public to seasoned international collectors in mind.”
PROJECTS introduced five large-scale installations and spatial interventions that challenged the confines of the traditional art fair booth. Hong Kong’s own Sin Sin Fine Art presented Growth (2016) by Indonesian born Dwi Setianto, a specially commissioned, site-specific installation extending 12 meters in length.
Other projects included Thomas Canto’s Suspended Landscape (2016, Opera Gallery, Hong Kong), Locust Jones’ Back to Dark Ages (2015/16, Dominik Mersch Gallery, Sydney), Henry Hussey’s Locking Horns (2015, Coates and Scarry, London), and Peter Adsett’s Wall Hang (2016, PAULNACHE, Gisborne).
Art Central also presented MEDIA X MUMM, the fair’s first exhibition of new media and performance art, supported by G.H. Mumm Champagne. MEDIA X MUMM projects included a newly commissioned performance by Ting-Tong Chang, The Colosseum, presented by RISE exhibitor Christine Park Gallery (London). Other projects included Nonotak Studio (Bluerider ART, Taipei), Yves Netzhammer (Galerie Anita Beckers, Frankfurt), and The Container (Tokyo).
Launching at Art Central 2016 was ROUNDTABLE X 4A; a series of discussions, interviews, presentations and performances hosted by 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art, Sydney. The roundtable program aimed to increase appreciation for contemporary art with guests able to join the 4A team at their communal ‘roundtable’ to participate in a dynamic program featuring performances by Frances Barrett, Abdullah M.I. Syed and Latai Taumoepea, each of which reflected on the context of the contemporary art fair in Asia.
Maree Di Pasquale
Also new for the second edition of Art Central was SCREEN X EXPERIMENTA; a curated platform for experimental and narrative motion picture filmmakers. Curated by Gina Wong, founder and director of Experimenta Hong Kong, the program comprised of a collection of short films from across Asia and the world, screened daily.
Asia Society Hong Kong Center returned to enhance the Art Central experience with a series of talks and panel discussions. TALKS X ASIA SOCIETY provided a means for visitors to directly engage with some of the leading artistic trends in Asia and the world, and featured Alexandra Munroe (Samsung Senior Curator, Asian Art and Senior Advisor, Global Arts at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Foundation) in conversation with leading contemporary artist, Shen Wei.
Amid the champagne and new media, the Art Central buzz wouldn’t have been complete without a dash of fashion, and J.Crew joined the energy through RISE, a dedicated emerging section showcasing early career artists from spaces launched in the last six years. The J.Crew space was a creative work in progress, with the brand’s striped long sleeved shirts, jeans and t-shirts waiting to be turned into canvases. The most promising RISE artist received a monetary prize sponsored by the American brand.
Continuing the relationship with Art Central, Swarovski once again welcomed visitors to the fair with a crystal installation. Sundew by British-Chinese designer Elaine Yan Ling Ng was a stunning kinetic piece, bringing Ng’s unique approach to design, encompassing textiles, electronics, biomimicry and interiors, to the highly interactive presentation.
Taking inspiration from nature, craft and technology, Ng created interactive objects that mimic the exotic Sundew, a carnivorous plant that attracts its prey with scent and reflected light. The installation combined handmade textiles with Swarovski crystal fabric, luring audiences in.
Art Central took things a step further with an expanded dining area and Belon pop-up restaurant. Black Sheep Restaurants presented one of the city’s most anticipated new names Belon, a neo-Parisian bistro showcasing French-rooted, yet locally-influenced cooking, reminiscent of the dynamic food scene found in Paris’ 11th arrondissement. The restaurant, which is due to open soon on SoHo’s Elgin Street, was recreated in a custom designed pop up for the fair.
STREET FOOD @ ART CENTRAL returned with five Hong Kong dining names Beef & Liberty, Bread & Beast, Brickhouse, TRi and XTC Gelato with live DJs creating a soothing environment for some down time.
The Street Food area was also the location for this years’ Absolute Art Bar, designed by Guru Jimmy, the alter ego and spitirual guide of UK artist James Ostrer.
Following his celebrated appearance at the 2015 Venice Biennale, Guru Jimmy was given carte blanche to fully conceptualise and create his Art Bar, from drinks to décor and entertainment and ambience. Inspired by his own outlook that the future is not a given, and that all people should have the right to create their own, the artist imagined a technicolor dream-state replete with beanbag chairs, material wealth rugs, and other spiritual endeavours.
Art Central’s sophisticated yet edgy feel and reputation continues to attract collectors, buyers, curators and artists alongside the art-loving general public.
It’s a hamonious marriage between the fun, value, importance and energy that is art, using all that Hong Kong has to offer to bring it to appreciators from near and far.
