The Opening Ceremony of the "Infinite Creativity in Art" Exhibition, jointly organised by the Labour and Welfare Bureau (LWB), the Social Welfare Department (SWD), the Arts Development Fund for Persons with Disabilities (the Arts Fund) and Sun Museum, was held today (January 11).

     The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Yan Chai Hospital and Founding Director of Simon Suen Foundation, Mrs Mary Suen, officiated at the ceremony. The Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms Alice Lau; the Director of Social Welfare, Miss Charmaine Lee; and the Commissioner for Rehabilitation of the LWB, Miss Vega Wong, also attended.

     Addressing the opening ceremony, Mr Sun said that the exhibition showcased art pieces created by persons with disabilities to promote public understanding of their artistic potential and talent. While admiring the art pieces, members of the public may feel the creative journey of persons with disabilities and understand how they overcome the challenges all the way. The public may also gain a better understanding of how persons with disabilities unleash their artistic talent with their unique perspectives and presentation skills.

     To promote the artistic development of persons with disabilities and foster their artistic attainments, the SWD set up the Arts Fund in March 2019 to provide funding to eligible organisations to organise various types of arts projects for persons with disabilities, and provide professional arts tutors, related materials and technical support services so that continuous training can be offered to those with potential. Up till now, the Arts Fund has approved a total grant of over $57 million, funding 95 projects in 64 service units.

     As the first exhibition under the Arts Fund which showcases the artworks created by persons with disabilities to the public, the exhibition aims to promote public understanding and recognition of the artistic potential of persons with disabilities and foster disability inclusion using art as a catalyst.

     The exhibition showcases about 200 art pieces created by persons with disabilities, including about 140 paintings and about 60 handicrafts. The forms of the artworks are diverse, which cover not only paintings, such as ink painting, watercolour, pastel and oil painting, but also handicrafts, such as ceramics, tie-dyeing, mosaic and fabric products. Some of the art pieces are created by groups to show team spirit.

     The exhibition, which will be open to the public for free from tomorrow (January 12) to March 16, is staged at Sun Museum on the 4/F, SML Tower, 165 Hoi Bun Road, Kwun Tong, Kowloon. The opening hours of the museum are from 10am to 6pm from Tuesday to Saturday (closed on Sundays, Mondays and public holidays). Interested organisations may make an appointment online (www.en.sunmuseum.org.hk/) or contact Sun Museum at 2690 6790 for enquiries.

Ends/Thursday, January 11, 2024
Issued at HKT 19:35

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