M+ chief Lars Nittve vows museum won't steer clear of politics

The West Kowloon Cultural District has taken centre stage again this week, courtesy of a display of giant inflatables.

But a document that will have implications long after the bubble has burst on the sculptures that form the "M+: Inflation! Exhibition" has quietly taken shape behind the scenes.

The acquisition policy for M+, the museum of contemporary visual culture that will be first out of the gate as the arts hub takes shape, may sound dry. But this blueprint will shape what visitors to the museum experience when it opens its doors in 2017; it specifies how the museum will assess what donations to accept and what artwork to purchase.

The content of the collection, and other artworks being acquired for the culture hub's galleries, museums and public spaces, is under the spotlight after lawmaker Chan Kam-lam, of the Beijing-loyalist Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, warned the museum not to mix art and politics.

In an interview with the Post, the museum's executive director, Lars Nittve, made clear that he would not steer away from politics.

He said the museum would also be more than just another museum of contemporary art like London's Tate Modern, of which Nittve was the founding director. Instead, the acquisitions policy will set it on the path to offering a "Hong Kong perspective with a global vision" - the orginal vision stipulated in 2006.