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Seventy-six works created by selected artists or units who participated in the Artists in the Neighbourhood Scheme IV (AIN) this year are on display from tomorrow (January 24) to January 30 at the Exhibition Hall of Hong Kong City Hall Low Block.
The AIN, organised by the Art Promotion Office (APO), aims to establish a platform for art in the community by providing new exhibition venues for artists to bring their latest works to the general public, thus fostering a closer relationship between art and daily life.
The five artists and three art units selected from 96 applications made under the AIN IV are mixed-media artists Alice Lai, Pauline Lam and Hanison Lau; the Hong Kong Visual Arts Society; photographic art group Lumenvisum; video and photographic artist Lam Wai-kit; printmaking art group Hong Kong Graphics Society, and ceramicist Johnson Tsang.
Alice Lai graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong's Fine Arts Department in 2000. She obtained the Hong Kong Arts Development Council ¡V FCO Chevening ¡V University of Leeds Scholarships in 2005 to pursue a master's degree in fine art in the UK. She has been working as a full time art administrator since graduating from the Chinese University. She has participated in various exhibitions, including "Fouroom"(2006), "Dream Garden - Art & Environment Programme 2003 ¡V 2004", "Fotanian Open Studios" (2003 & 2004), "An Exhibition of A To Z" (2003) and " 'Test tube Bear' Festival of Vision ¡V Berlin in Hong Kong" (2000).
Pauline Lam received her bachelor's degree from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and master's degree in fine arts from RMIT University in Melbourne. She is now teaching at the Hong Kong Institute of Education. She has held several solo installation and sculpture exhibitions. Her conceptual and site-specific installation works are often seen in many venues. She was invited to participate in more than 100 exhibitions. She specialises in using different media at particular sites, including site-specific installation works in piers and on the ferry, and conceptual works at the Lunar New Year Fair Market and at the former Victoria Prison. In recent years, her works mainly focus on the relationship between cultural development and human activities.
Hanison Lau is now pursuing his master's degree at RMIT University after receiving his bachelor's degree in art from the same institution in 2005. Since 2003, Hanison has been actively participating in various local joint exhibitions. In 2006, he held two solo exhibitions in Hong Kong, namely "Order" and "Poem¡EImagine". His works were selected in the Philippe Charriol Foundation Art Competition in 2004 and 2005. He is now a teaching assistant at the Hong Kong Art School. He loves to create his installations with ready-made objects. He also has a keen interest in history and literature.
The Hong Kong Visual Arts Society (HKVAS) was set up in 1974 by art and design students who had studied in the 1960s at the Extra-Mural Department of the University of Hong Kong. The HKVAS has organised many exhibitions and activities to promote visual arts in Hong Kong. It is also one of the most energetic and longstanding local art groups.
Lumenvisum was founded by four veteran photographers in 2007. In the same year, Lumenvisum acquired sponsorship from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council for its photo research project, "Dang-jia". Featuring a series of workshops, exchange meetings and a final exhibition, the programme enabled participants from all walks of life to express their thoughts about the 10 years of Hong Kong's reunion with China through the medium of photography.
Lam Wai-kit graduated with a bachelor's degree with honours in fine art from Goldsmiths College, University of London, in 1996. In 2003, she received her master's degree in fine arts from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. From 1996, Lam has participated in many local and overseas exhibitions, and also solo photography and video exhibitions in Hong Kong, Canada and the UK, such as "The Displacement" (2002), "The Other" (2004) and the "The Divided Minds" series (2007). Her works were selected for the Philippe Charriol Foundation Modern Arts Competition, Hong Kong, the Contemporary Hong Kong Art Biennial Exhibition 1998 and the Eighth Hong Kong Independent Short Film and Video Awards. Her works include video, photography and text. Through the effects of overlapping and juxtaposition of images, she creates an atmosphere that is in between reality and illusion.
The Hong Kong Graphics Society was established in 1976 and is the oldest print association in Hong Kong. The society introduces printmaking to the public through exhibitions, talks, workshops and exchange activities where local and foreign print artists enhance the quality of their artworks through sharing of experiences. Large scale exhibitions and related activities have included exchange exhibitions with Shanghai, Jiangsu, Heilongjiang and Anhui in China. In 2006, the 30th anniversary show of the Hong Kong Graphics Society was held to mark another milestone for the society.
Johnson Tsang, a self-taught ceramicist, specialises in ceramic sculpturing. In 1996, he set up his own ceramics workshop, and started to hold ceramic art activities with various organisations. Since 1993 he has taken part in a number of local and overseas joint exhibitions, and has held solo exhibitions in Hong Kong. He won the first prize in the 2001 Philippe Charriol Foundation Art Competition. He was the winner of the Teaware by Hong Kong Potters competition in 2001 and 2005, and won the Outstanding Workmanship Award in the same competition in 2007. His works were cited in the Hong Kong Art Biennial Exhibition (2005), The First Taiwan Ceramics Biennale (2004), The Third World Ceramic Biennale 2005 Korea International Competition, VIII Bienal Internacional de Cerˆhmica, Manises, Spain (2007), and The City of Carouge Prize 2007 International Ceramics Competition, Switzerland. His works mostly employ realist sculptural techniques accompanied by surrealist imagination, integrating the two elements, "human beings" and "objects", into creative themes.
Solo exhibitions of the selected artists or units are scheduled to take place from March 2008 to January 2010 at different Leisure and Cultural Services Department venues. The APO will also work with different partners to extend the exhibitions to a greater variety of venues to broaden the audience base.
The Hong Kong City Hall Low Block is located at 5 Edinburgh Place, Central. It is open daily from 10am to 8pm. Admission is free.
For details of the exhibition, please visit the websites at www.artistneighbourhood.info/ or www.lcsd.gov.hk/apo. For enquiries, please call 3101 2712 or 3101 2713.
Ends/Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Issued at HKT 18:31
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