Making (Perfect) World: Harbour, Hong Kong, Alienated Cities and Dreams is one of the funniest art shows I’ve seen. My friends and I chanced upon Pak Sheung Chuen’s solo exhibition as we were exploring the Arsenale in Venice during the 53rd International Art Exhibition.
None of us had heard about this Hong Kong artist before or knew what to expect from the exhibit but came out with goofy grins on our faces. Funny, approachable art. Love it. These are some of my favorite works.
“The Horizon Placed at Home” started with a horizontal line the artist drew on a map of Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, connecting the east and west coasts. He collected water from the 45 intersections along the coastline in plastic bottles labeled with the longitude and latitude coordinates of each location. Then, according to Pak, “A continuous sea level emerged.” I love the way he incorporates his city into his works but in a manner not exclusive to HK natives. For me, Victoria Harbour monetarily existed within this Venetian courtyard.
“Waiting for a Friend (Without an Appointment)” is best explained in the artist’s own words.
“Without an appointment, I randomly selected a place and waited for a friend there. This time Jacky, a university classmate whom I had not seen for two years, appeared at the chosen location at 16:38. He asked me, “How do you know I’d be here?” I told him, “I really don’t know… but I’ve been waiting for you here for a long time!”
“Waiting for Everyone to Fall Asleep” is pretty self-explanatory, too. He photographed one building through the night as he waited for everyone to fall asleep. “A person in the building remained awake throughout the night, we ended up wasting a night together while being on opposite sides of the street.”
This is me and my friends in “A Travel Without Visual Experience”, a darkened gallery hung with pictures from Pak’s blind tour of Malaysia. He went on a 5-day/4-night trip to an unknown country and relied on strangers and his other senses to experience the place. Visitors were similarly blinded and were only allowed digital cameras to experience Malaysia secondhand. There was also a soundtrack playing as we stumbled around in the dark, giggling and taking pictures. Super fun.
I’m not exaggerating when I say I loved every one of them. Check out Pak’s blog to find out more and also see his other projects. The posts aren’t always in English, but there’s a fair bit for us non-Chinese-literate to read.
*All photos, except the last, and artist’s quotes are from the official HK Venice Biennale site
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