Exhibition aims to show that beauty is an abstract concept

Artist Joe Joe Ngai is out to prove that beauty is a myth and that our own sense of self-reflection has been skewed by the media. So what sense does it make that his exhibition is being held in a trendy Causeway Bay hipster fashion store? It wasn't his idea, that's why.

The 'Good is the New Black' exhibition, which features Ngai's stylish oil paintings of Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, Snow White and other real life and fictional characters, was arranged by Galerie Ora-Ora to showcase in the Another Ground shop in Lee Theatre Plaza. Ngai's concept, which asks the question 'who sets the standards for beauty?', features a piece that depicts Princess Diana in various states of altered appearance. 'The general conception of Princess Diana is that she is not only beautiful on the outside, but she is this angelic figure on the inside too; everything about her is good,' he said, adding that in the end, she was just another human being whose perception has been manipulated by the media.

'Good is the New Black is meant to poke fun at the fashion saying 'so and so is the new black!',' said Ngai, who seemed aloof to the irony that his exhibition was inside a clothing store. Whether or not you 'get' the abstract message, Ngai's works are worth a look for the intriguing use of colours and patterns. It runs until October 1.