Tai Kwun opened, outdoor events sprouted, more galleries opened: Hong Kong art in 2018

Awareness of the gender imbalance in art, the popularity of outdoor art festivals, and more international galleries were talking points this year

Famed art dealers continue to set up shop in Hong Kong despite the high rent

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Pumpkin: big, by artist Yayoi Kusama, exhibited at the Harbour Arts Sculpture Park at the Central Promenade in Hong Kong. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 12:32pm, 30 Dec 2018Updated: 12:32pm, 30 Dec 2018

A number of trends jump out in a review of the 2018 Hong Kong art scene: new awareness of the gender imbalance in art, the popularity of outdoor art festivals, and the arrival of more international galleries.

We saw a flurry of activity around International Women’s Day that set the tone for a year that raised the profile of women in the arts. The Guerrilla Girls came to Hong Kong and highlighted the dismal representation of women in local galleries and collections, which was backed by the Post’s own findings.

The New Hall art collection in Cambridge loaned works by Hong Kong female artists for a special exhibition at Sotheby’s gallery.

Three months later, it was announced that Hong Kong-born artist Shirley Tse and curator Christina Li will represent the city at the 2019 Venice Biennale, the first time a female artist will have a solo exhibition at the Hong Kong pavilion.

Some of this year’s best shows in what was otherwise a lean year for quality exhibitions happened to be retrospectives that gave fresh insights into the careers of well-established female artists: The Asia Society’s Hong Kong centre’s ongoing “Song of Spring: Pan Yu-Lin in Paris” exhibition that runs until January 6, 2019; and Ellen Pau’s “What about Home Affairs?” – a collection of 18 works by the groundbreaking Hong Kong video artist at Para Site (until February 17).

Video artist Ellen Pau at the retrospective show of her works in Quarry Bay. Photo: Xiaomei Chen