![]() ![]() The precision of Yassin’s statement is a testament to the artist’s sharp response to the notion of global culture and historical heritage in the 21st Century. In this work, the global clusterfuck produced by the constant circulation and trade of objects and people is made apparent. The work was produced as part of the 2012 Abraaj Capital Art Prize of which Yassin was a recipient. Here, Kalfayan has presented photographs by Syrian artist Hrair Sarkissian against a series of vases produced in China in the Ming style, depicting scenes from the Lebanese Civil War in Raed Yassin’s, China. It is a state most clearly illustrated in the Discoveries section. Like the fair itself, Encounters is a patchwork of cultural (con)fusion. Works showing in Encounters include Jitish Kallat’s bamboo scaffolding encasing a large square column, Circa (2011), MadeIn Company’s leather-clad cathedral hung from the ceiling with rope, Play (201_B01) (2013), and a series of coloured venetian blinds arranged to produce a hanging mobile by Haegue Yang. It aims to explore the ideas of “East” and “West,” looking at memory, history, and social contexts from a transcultural perspective. In this, naming the sectors complementing the main Galleries section Discoveries, Insights, and Encounters, is telling if not instructive.Ĭurated by Yuko Hasegawa, Encounters presents large-scale installations installed in various “plazas” within the fair halls. But perhaps this is not so much about good or bad art as it is about different art(s). ![]() Some visitors commented on the mixed quality at ABHK during the preview. ![]() The result is eclectic (35 nations in total are represented), with styles intermingling but not necessarily blending. More than fifty per cent out of the 245 presenting galleries come from Asia and the Asia-Pacific region, from Turkey, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent to Australia and New Zealand, with twenty-six alone coming from Hong Kong. During Art Basel in Hong Kong’s press conference on Vernissage Day, Art Basel’s Director Marc Spiegler noted that 2013’s inaugural Art Basel in Hong Kong (ABHK) was not only a historical moment because Art Basel has come to Asia, but also because there has never been such a strong combination of eastern and western galleries presented together at an art fair. In reflection of this, Art Basel, which has always predicated itself on a certain globalism, is moving with the times. It is a clear indication of a certain global expansion taking place in the contemporary arts, mirrored by the sheer number of artists and galleries operating globally, each with their own approach, style and focus. That Art Basel has come to Hong Kong to occupy two halls of the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre – (the world’s most occupied convention centre) – is a case in point. Indeed, with art fairs and biennales proliferating around the world, there is not one art centre, but centres. With collectors being extra cautious and new collectors (and new money) entering the art market, art fairs are also about building relationships, tastes and, in the 21st Century, more expanded notions of object-based art. When it comes to art fairs these days, it’s not just about selling.
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