Launched in 2013, Art021 – considered by some to be mainland China’s answer to Art Basel – opened in Shanghai and has experienced exponential growth over the past three years, generating over one billion yuan in sales over the past three years, according to organizers.
It has also been organizing the Jingart trade fair in Beijing since 2018 and the DnA Shenzhen from 2021.
The Hong Kong Fair, which is financially supported by the local government, is divided into four sections.
Entry to the “Sculpture” sections of the fair, held at Victoria Park and the Fringe Club, is free. Standard tickets for the “Gallery” section at Phillips Asia headquarters and the “Expansion” section at the Fringe Club cost HK$300, with concessionary tickets costing HK$150.
The “Video” area at the Asia Society Centre is free for students in the morning and costs HK$50 or HK$35 for standard and concession tickets respectively.
Organizers said more than 20,000 VIPs and collectors had registered for the fair, with over 50 percent coming from the mainland and overseas and the rest from Hong Kong. They said they expected direct economic benefits of HK$300 million to the city.
Chau did not disclose how much his company received from the government’s Mega Arts and Cultural Events Fund for the event.
He rejected the notion that the city’s national security laws would hamper creativity and expression, saying Hong Kong is a very open and inclusive society, especially when it comes to culture.
“Artworks are still critical, but the object of criticism is different,” Chau said. “They focus more on exploring the artist’s inner thoughts and their connection to the world.”
He said that the company’s more than ten years of experience in organizing art fairs meant it was well prepared to meet the challenges involved, adding that censorship in the West was “much stricter than here.”
The Hong Kong fair also aims to explore art practices from the West and Asia. Exhibitors include, for example, Tehran’s Dastan Gallery, which is presenting a group exhibition of Iranian artists exploring the connection between Asian cultural heritage and the present.
Chau expressed the hope that future editions of the fair will continue the theme of “Global South,” which includes mainland China, countries and regions of the Belt and Road Initiative, South America, Africa and other emerging economies.
The mainland is represented by ShanghART Gallery, Tang Contemporary Art, Kwai Fung Hin, Hive Centre for Contemporary Art, Antenna Space, MadeIn Gallery and Triumph Gallery, among others.
“We hope that a Chinese art fair can introduce contemporary Chinese artists to the world, so that people can see that China’s contemporary art, especially that of the younger generation, is truly world-class,” Chau said.
A member of Tate’s Asia Pacific Acquisitions Committee in the UK in 2021 and 2022, Chau is also a founding member of the Asian Arts Council of the Vancouver Arts Gallery in Canada and a member of the Board of Trustees of the M+ Museum in Hong Kong.
Art Basel Hong Kong 2024 brought together 243 galleries from around the world, up from 177 in 2023 and 130 the year before, while Art Central 2024 had 98 selling galleries, 70 percent of which came from the Asia-Pacific region, just shy of the pre-pandemic record of 107 exhibitors.
