Walking brief For art lovers
If it were not for the sea of pinstripe suits and briefcases, one would have thought the hordes of people carrying maps on Wednesday night around Soho were tourists.
The folks hiking up the escalators with plastic cups of wine were in fact tourists in their own city - gallery-hopping from one creative destination to another in the annual Art Walk.
About 2,000 people turned up at $300-$400 a pop to do what seemed like their annual art shopping spree. In a few hours, the flow of visitors exceeded the weekly, and even monthly, numbers normally seen at many galleries.
Some careful planning came before the crowds. Tricks of the trade by gallery owners included hanging paintings higher to avoid damage, as the folks at the John Batten Gallery did. Another was to serve only white wine (Picture This Gallery) to avoid stains. The art lovers paid attention, too. Comments such as 'what is art?' to 'this is not landscape art', to 'oh well, the frame is nice' were heard at various times throughout the evening. And at some galleries there were comments about the food and wine being skimpy.
At the entrance to Bark Gallery in Lan Kwai Fong, four art spotters were quick to turn on their heels and exit when someone jokingly said that there was no more wine.
Organiser Monica Suen says the event exceeded the target amount of raising $400,000 for the charity Aids Concern.
