The first Affordable Art Fair Hong Kong just finished in the last weekend. The 3-day event hosted a wealth of contemporary art from all over the world at a relatively affordable price (HKD1,000-100,000). Founded by Will Ramsay in London in 1999, he aims at bringing contemporary art to the mass. “Fundamentally, we believe art should be for everyone,” said Ramsay.
There are great deal of mixed media arts in the selection. Artists are making interesting textures on the canvas to elicit strong visual effects. For example, Martha Winter’s Void Contour works with pigment and sand to create geometrical shape. Chris Wood’s Wall Panel uses glasses to explore the magical qualities of light. The space and light interact and produce complex pattern.
There are also some pieces that jokes with logo. Singaporean artist Andre Tan merges fashion brand logo with cartoon characters. The disparity evokes a self-questioning of our identity under mass culture. Korean artist Goh Geun-Ho’s steel sculptures combine toys and popular or iconic public figures. You can also find Snow White holding an Apple logo or Botticelli’s Venus with a background full of logos like Chanel and Nike. What’s more sarcastic than having brand logo invading the purity of classical art and childhood stories?
Similarly on the line of dualism, Joel Moens’s Adoration plays with religion. The portrait of nun is actually a photomontage from thousands of sexy women’s panties. Even though it may not be the artist’s intention, it seems to remind us of the current sex scandals of Catholic church.
It’s certainly a good event for heating up the art scene in Hong Kong, especially when the first Art Basel Hong Kong is coming in May.
Check our facebook album for more AAF Hong Kong’s artworks!
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