As part of a series of activities in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Berlin (HKETO Berlin) presents a Hong Kong comics exhibition in collaboration with the Museum for Communication (MfK) in Berlin. From June 17 to July 2, "Let's Play Ping Pong!" features five young comic artists and illustrators from Hong Kong, who demonstrate how cross-media collaboration can extend the limit of comics.
      
     The artists – Leumas To, Vivian Ho, Overloaddance, Nykie Ngan, and Wong Sze-chit – are members of the Hong Kong-based artist group Ping Pong which forms part of the Comix Home Base, a project of the Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC). The Ping Pong artists combine Chinese and Western techniques to generate new ideas in the creative process and provide a unique visiting experience for audience in the gallery space.
      
     The Action Day on June 17 (Berlin time) featured the welcome remarks by the Director of HKETO Berlin, Ms Betty Ho; the designated Vice Director of MfK, Ms Jenny Kästner; and the Executive Director of HKAC, Ms Connie Lam. The subsequent cocktail reception was followed by a live-drawing session by Ping Pong artists together with local German artists.
      
     In her speech, Ms Ho talked about the diverse and vibrant culture of Hong Kong. Referring to the timeline exhibited in MfK, she said "comics and animation have been important elements of Hong Kong culture since the 1960s and mirrored its social development." She continued, "this week, we are glad to have 'Ping Pong', a group of young and talented Hong Kong comics artists, to come to Berlin and share with us the new generation of energy in our comics world."
      
     Ms Ho also highlighted the achievements of the city in the past 20 years, from completion of new infrastructure projects, to achievements in economic performance, academic and cultural pursuits. "These were all made possible under 'one country, two systems', which enables Hong Kong to fully utilise our strengths to progress further. We stay together; we have made progress; and we are ready for new opportunities."
      
     To celebrate the 20th anniversary of HKSAR, HKETO Berlin is staging another exhibition in Berlin together with Aedes Architecture Forum, on the West Kowloon Cultural District, which will run until July 13.  On June 22, the Tang Shu-wing Theatre Studio will perform a new Cantonese version of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" in Berlin's famous Admiralspalast. On June 27, HKETO Berlin will host a gala dinner in Berlin, featuring special Hong Kong cuisines prepared by culinary masters and their students flying all the way from Hong Kong; and then will take part in the "20th Berlin City-Cup" dragon boat races on July 1. In the second half of July, a Hong Kong film festival will be staged in Arsenal Cinema of Berlin.
     
     "Let's Play Ping Pong!" runs from June 17 to July 2 at the MfK.
       
     Address: 
     Museum for Communication
     Leipziger Str. 16                                                  
     10117 Berlin
      
     Opening Hours:
     Tuesday, 9am to 8pm
     Wednesday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
     Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 6pm
      
     For further details, please visit www.mfk-berlin.de/pingpong/  

About HKETO Berlin
 
     HKETO Berlin is the official HKSAR Government representative in commercial relations and other economic and trade matters in Germany as well as Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland.

Ends/Monday, June 19, 2017
Issued at HKT 23:44

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