Hong Kong on Tuesday got its first glimpse of the collection at the heart of its new flagship gallery, with an exhibition that has highlighted fears Beijing’s influence in the territory is infecting the arts.
The M+ Sigg show features 80 works by famous Chinese names, including Yue Minjun (岳敏君) — known for his paintings of laughing faces — and surrealist Zhang Xiaogang (張曉剛).
It is billed as the first ever chronological exhibition on the emergence of Chinese contemporary art and gives a taste of a much wider collection that will eventually go on show at Hong Kong’s new M+ gallery.
Photo: AFP
The massive 60,000m3 art venue, set to open in 2019, aims to rival Western contemporary heavyweights such as London’s Tate Modern, but the Hong Kong government-sponsored gallery has been criticized for failing to fully represent the local art scene and faces questions over its curatorial independence.
Some in the art community ask why it spent none of its HK$1.7 billion (US$220 million) acquisition budget on creations that blossomed on Hong Kong’s streets during the pro-democracy Umbrella movement of 2014. Others question whether this week’s exhibition — on display at a smaller gallery as M+ awaits completion — has been pared back, pointing out its touring title, “Right is wrong,” has been dropped.
There have been queries over whether some more controversial works were excluded and whether there was pressure to tone down the narrative of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre.
M+ chief curator Doryun Chong (鄭道鍊) defended the new exhibition, saying it is a “whole, full historical survey” of Chinese modern art — one that includes works by Beijing’s bete noir Ai Weiwei (艾未未).
He also insisted M+ has not been subject to political pressure, but admitted the gallery takes a conservative approach to its collection and exhibitions.
“There might be certain institutions or curators who believe in the idea or the power of provocation, but I don’t believe in that,” Chong said.
The questions swirling around M+ come as concern grows in Hong Kong over interference from Beijing in the semi-autonomous territory’s politics, education and media.
Those fears have been exacerbated by the disappearances of five people who work for a Hong Kong publishing house and bookstore known for publishing titles critical of the Chinese government. Four are now under criminal investigation in China.
Some connected to M+ say self-censorship is becoming a bigger problem in the territory.
“In Hong Kong, we do feel like there is a big tightening of the public sphere over the past two or three years, whether it’s in publishing, in theaters, in exhibitions,” said Ada Wong (黃英琦), a local arts advocate and a member of the M+ museum committee.
“I think this administration in particular, they are very cautious as to what would upset Beijing,” added Wong, referring to the government of Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying (梁振英), who is seen as a staunch ally of China.
Wong said local artists have even begun to tone down their work for fear of upsetting the authorities.
“Self-censorship ... it’s happening, it’s just still under the table,” she said. “The fear is here and the tightening of control is definitely here.”
The M+ gallery site in West Kowloon remains a sprawling construction site 20 years after it was first dreamed up.
Political interference has been blamed for delays that have eaten up the project’s entire HK$21.6 billion government grant and prompted senior figures, including M+ executive director Lars Nittve, to step down.
West Kowloon Cultural District Authority chief executive Duncan Pescod admitted the full complex — which is to eventually also include a theater and public parks — could take another 10 to 15 years to complete.
He said the authority is considering working with several developers at the same time to speed things up.
However, despite the concerns, there is still hope that M+ will draw attention to the territory’s undernourished creative industries.
“For a long time Hong Kong has perhaps not been the most hospitable city for emerging artists,” said Pearl Lam (林明珠), who runs a prominent private gallery, pointing to the high cost of living and rental space. “M+ will be exceptionally important for Hong Kong when it opens.”
Hong Kong is already a burgeoning art hub -— its the world’s fourth-largest art market and it hosts major international show Art Basel.
There has been an explosion of art galleries, with major Western brands such as White Cube and Galerie Perrotin opening offices in the past five years, while smaller local art studios setting up home in former industrial heartlands.
Still, advocates say the government must do more to support the next generation of local artists — and stop being so afraid of controversy.
“If you want to support the arts you have to start by nurturing the young,” Wong said. “Creativity can be disruptive and that’s what officials are worried about.”
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