Hong Kong House at Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale 2018 opens (with photos)
The Hong Kong House at the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale 2018 opened in Tsunan, Japan, today (July 29), aiming to connect the people and cultures of Hong Kong and Japan through art. The Hong Kong House is co-presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale for the first time.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li, said that as an incubator and promoter of Hong Kong art, the LCSD is deeply honoured to participate in this world-renowned art festival. She expressed the hope that the Hong Kong House will serve as a sustainable platform for cross-disciplinary arts and cultural exchanges between Hong Kong and Japan, as well as a showcase of Hong Kong's art talent. Ms Li said she also believed that the Hong Kong House will not only become a base for Hong Kong artists to explore rural nature and local culture in Japan, but also an art hub for further international exchanges.
An open call for architectural design proposals and artwork proposals for the Hong Kong House was held by the Art Promotion Office (APO) during July and August last year. From the hundreds of proposals received, an architect team consisting of Yip Chun-hang, Otto Ng, Adam Kor, Lau Chun-tat, Lee Lit-kwan, Lau Yip-fay and Yau Chiu-ting was selected to be responsible for the exterior, structural and interior design of the Hong Kong House, while three artist groups comprising Leung Chi Wo + Sara Wong, Annie Wan, and L sub (Pak Sheung-chuen, Wendy Wo and Yim Sui-fong) have been commissioned to showcase their artworks at the Hong Kong House in 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively.
Apart from presenting artworks by Hong Kong artists, a range of special programmes and fringe activities will be held over the three years, including workshops by artists, performances, sonic experience programmes, writer-in-residence programmes, literature sharing and printmaking activities.
The Hong Kong House is now running the "Tsunan Museum of the Lost" exhibition till September 17, with the participating artists being Leung Chi Wo + Sara Wong. A variety of fringe activities will also be held in the Hong Kong House by activity collaborators, including soundpocket, Art Appraisal Club and Fleurs des Lettres, from July to September. For details of the events, please visit the Facebook page of the project at www.facebook.com/apo.hkhouse.
Other officiating guests at the ceremony included the Chairman of the Art Sub-committee of the Museum Advisory Committee, Mr Vincent Lo; the Principal Hong Kong Economic and Trade Representative (Tokyo), Ms Shirley Yung; the Mayor of Tsunan Town, Mrs Haruka Kuwabara; the Chairman of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale Executive Committee, Mr Yoshifumi Sekiguchi; the General Director of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale, Mr Fram Kitagawa; the Director of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Professor Adrian Walter; and the Head of the APO, Dr Lesley Lau.
The Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale is one of the largest international outdoor art festivals in the world and is held once every three years in the Echigo-Tsumari region. Using farmland as the stage and art as a catalyst, the Triennale provides a platform to present projects and initiatives which aim to reveal existing assets of the region and rebuild the relationship between humans and nature through artistic creation, appreciation and participation. Since 2000, over 700 artists from all over the world have made use of the plentiful resources from the land and the community to create more than 1 000 pieces of art. Abandoned houses and schools in Echigo-Tsumari are adaptively reused and transformed into stages to showcase artworks and creative ideas.
The Hong Kong House is presented by the LCSD and organised by the APO, with the collaboration of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale Executive Committee and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. The activity collaborators are soundpocket, Fleurs des Lettres, Art Appraisal Club and Hong Kong Open Printshop. The project is also supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Tokyo. For details, please visit the project's website at www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/APO/en_US/web/apo/hong_kong_house_echigo_tsumari_art_triennale_2018.html, or call 2512 3018, 2512 3019 or 2512 3020.
The Hong Kong House is located at 29 – 4 Miyanohara, Kamigo, Tsunan-machi, Nakauonuma-gun, Niigata Prefecture, Japan.
