A melting pot of art and culture

The much-awaited Hong Kong Arts Month takes place next month, offering culture vultures a wide spectrum of performances, concerts, exhibits and other forms of artistic expression. 

All eyes will be on Hong Kong as it welcomes the best artists from East and West to its theatres, galleries and exhibition centres, and turns all spaces into temporary art venues. 

One of the most talked-about events is Art Basel, the world’s premier show for modern and contemporary art works. 

From March 15 to 17, galleries from around the world will be able to demonstrate the way they work with artists, enabling visitors to enjoy the best art works from Asia-Pacific and the rest of the world.

Taking place at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Art Basel will be open for private viewing and invited guests only on March 13-15. It opens to the public from March 15 to 17. Tickets can be purchased on-site or in advance at HKTicketing.com. A special offer is available with the purchase of one weekday ticket until March 1. There are guided tours in English, Mandarin and Cantonese for the inexperienced art buyer and visitor alike.

March is also the month for Hong Kong Arts Festival, which promises to entertain culture buffs until March 29.

The festival is the pinnacle of the performing arts events, showcasing Asia’s top talents alongside leading international artists. They are ready to satisfy all tastes – from the classical, to the avant-garde, to the electrifying, in more than a dozen venues throughout the city! 

Ten-time Grammy winner Bobby McFerrin (“Don’t Worry, Be Happy”), American jazz singer songwriter Cassandra Wilson, the enthralling Pink Martini, and the Barefoot Divas are among the performers slated for this festival.

Dance enthusiasts will be treated to performances by the Dutch National Ballet, who will stage “Cinderella”, a Gala Flamenca featuring four of the world’s top flamenco dancers; and the Asia Pacific Dance Platform, which brings together Korea’s Hyoseung Ye and Taiwan’s all-male company Horse.

A rich variety of exhibitions, talks, performances, pop-art installations, open-air video screenings have been scheduled in the Chai Wan Industrial Area over the second weekend of March.

Other great events include the Asia Contemporary Art Fair at the Conrad Hong Kong Hotel, which will present more than 3,000 works of art including original paintings, limited editions, sculpture and photography from some of the world’s most interesting and promising artists. 

Art Central at the Central Harbourfront Event Space, which coincides with Art Basel, will feature more than 70 leading international galleries and will be staged in the largest ever specially commissioned, purpose-built structure to have ever been erected in Hong Kong. 

All these events turn Hong Kong into a true melting pot of international talent.

“Great performances have a wonderfully humanising influence,” says Tisa Ho, the festival’s executive director and one of Hong Kong’s most passionate arts advocates.

 “They release us from everyday life to reconnect with a self that is more vibrantly aware, more centred and at peace; allowing us to be more in tune with fundamental human values shared across different convictions and beliefs.”

 

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