8 must-see art exhibitions in Hong Kong this February

From painting to collage, here are the new art shows to ring in the month.

With Christmas and Chinese New Year celebrations behind us, it’s time to settle down and get back into the swing of things. And I don’t know about you, but for me, getting back into the swing of things means visiting an art gallery or two to nurse my post-holiday blues. February brings a small-but-exciting selection of visual showcases to Hong Kong, including a group exhibition organised by Beijing-based curator Yang Zi at Gagosian Hong Kong and the Prix Pictet photography competition at the Asia Society Hong Kong Center. Here are our picks this month.

Hong Kong art exhibitions to see this February 2023

Murmuration

When: 17 November to mid-March

Marie de Villepin marks her debut solo exhibition in Asia with “Murmuration”, where she lays down her diverse ideas and experiences by experimenting with a harmony of colours, shapes and rhythms. Using the canvas as an all-receptive medium, a tabula rasa, de Villepin unravels layers upon layers of paint to articulate abstraction as an ever-shifting field. In addition to paintings and drawings, “Murmuration” also features the artist’s personal stories and notes from art, music, film and photography that inspired her creative practice, transporting the viewer onto a visual and auditory journey.

Villepin, G-2/F, 53-55 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2528 0792

Ancient as Time, Modern as Tomorrow

When: 13 January to 4 March

In Julien Jaca’s newest exhibition at Over The Influence, the French artist presents his latest series of giant pots, combining antique iconography with pop figures against garish backgrounds. “I like to use ancient, traditional forms like antique pots and the crackled earthenware effect of this series, and then adorn them with contemporary images from pop culture such as cartoons and rock or metal typeface,” describes Jaca. Indeed, his works feature a tension between the old and the new, such as the imagery of 70s culture in the USA and other symbols of Generation Y; paired with the primitivism of tribal art and Native American artefacts.

Over The Influence, G/F & 1/F, 159 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2617 9829

Moonlit Dancing

When: 18 January to 18 February

On view at Contemporary by Angela Li is Chinese artist Kwong Man Chun’s first solo exhibition “Moonlit Dancing”. Deeply influenced by Chinese South School painting, Kwong creates poetic and dreamy pieces with a hint of nostalgia using a mix of Chinese traditional mineral pigment, ink and oil paint. His works are inspired by his daily life, especially the warmth of his family, and portray a “time travelling journey between ancient China and modern Hong Kong”. As such, exhibited artworks depict the tree in his homeland Huang Cen Ling; the herbal tea that his sister brew for him; and an aerolite that floats in tong lau.

Contemporary by Angela Li, G/F, 248 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong, +852 3571 8200

Christopher Williams: R59C Keystone Shower Door — Chrome/Raindrop

When: 20 January to 18 February

In his first show in Greater Asia, American conceptual artist and fine art photographer Christopher Williams works in a variety of media including photography, video and installation to depict scenes from everyday life. Developed in the 2010s, each piece in “Christopher Williams: R59C Keystone Shower Door — Chrome/Raindrop” focuses on a different everyday subject, such as three children in the backseat of a car on their way to school, wheat stalks in the spring, a yellow frying pan and more.

David Zwirner, 5-6/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central, Hong Kong, 2119 5900

Uncanny Valley

When: 31 January to 4 March

Organised by Beijing-based curator Yang Zi, “Uncanny Valley” is the latest exhibition at Gagosian Hong Kong featuring Chinese artists Owen Fu, Jiang Cheng, Li Hei Di, Li Weiyi, Nabuqi, Song Yuanyuan, Su Yu-Xin, Wang Haiyang, Wang Xiaoqu, Wang Xingwei and Zhang Zipiao. Through a series of contemporary paintings, sculptures and videos, the artists endow the human figure with psychological, existential and symbolic significance, inspired by the theory of the “uncanny valley” proposed by Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970.

Gagosian Hong Kong, 7/F, Pedder Building, 12 Pedder Street, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2151 0555

Fire

When: 7 February to 28 February

The ninth cycle of the Prix Pictet, a worldwide award celebrating photography and sustainability, is opening at the Asia Society Hong Kong Center this February. 13 photographers from Austria, Belgium, Benin, Cambodia, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, Switzerland and the USA have been shortlisted for this year’s prize. From documentary and collage to portraiture and landscape, each contestant’s photographic image revolve around the theme “Fire” — a concept that represents “survival, renewal and prosperity”, according to Stephen Barber, Chair of the Prix Pictet.

Asia Society Hong Kong Center, 9 Justice Drive, Admiralty, Hong Kong +852 2103 9511

Imagine Yourself a Warrior

When: 11 February to 11 March

London-based Chinese artist Xu Yang’s first solo exhibition in Hong Kong is a showcase of her Rococo-inspired works, which span still life, portraiture and drag performance. Centred around a mesmerising persona — an armoured, pink-haired and valiant-appearing heroine — Xu aims to challenge the existing norms of gender, power and representation with regard to her diasporic as well as queer experience.

MOU PROJECTS, 202, The Factory, 1 Yip Fat Street, Wong Chuk Hang, Hong Kong, +852 3709 6884

It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

When: 11 February to 23 March

Nothing At All is presenting a solo exhibition of Norwegian-born US-based artist Fanny Brodar for the first time in Hong Kong. 15 pieces in “It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” each represent a unit, a chapter or just a random day out of the countless days in one’s life, depicted through Brodar’s iconic muppet-like characters. Building on the artist’s own childhood, the muppets bear resemblance to classic cartoons such as Sesame Street from the 70s and Animaniacs from the 90s — a scene laced with nostalgia and innocence that lures the viewer into her made-up and magical world.

Nothing At All, 38 Sai Street, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

(Lead and featured images courtesy of Nothing At All)