Translated and compiled by Shin-wei Chang
Art Basel Hong Kong opened on March 24. Among the 239 galleries selected worldwide, nine Taiwanese galleries were chosen with two of them in the core sector, “Galleries.” This is the highest amount of Taiwanese galleries to be admitted to Art Basel Hong Kong in the last four years.
Art Basel Hong Kong, a prestigious arts event on modern and temporary arts, opened its fourth edition on March 24. Among the galleries in the show, nine Taiwanese galleries were admitted, marking the highest number in four years.
These galleries are Eslite Gallery, Soka Art Center, Tina Keng Gallery, TKG+, Lin & Lin Gallery, Liang Gallery, Project Fulfill Art Space, Chi-Wen and Gallery 100.
This is the first time for Gallery 100 to join the show. In addition, while Project Fulfill Art Space and TKG+ used to present their artwork in “Insights,” a sector featuring Asian galleries, the two galleries are shown in “Galleries,” the core sector, this year.
Art Basel Hong Kong is roughly twice as big as Art Taipei and this year, it chose 239 galleries out of 600 applications from all over the world.
Emily Chao, director of Eslite Gallery, says Art Basel Hong Kong is responsible for arranging the locations of the booths. As a result, Chao “tries to propose the best application to strive for the best location in the show.” She often chose artworks that can address highly relatable and universal messages to the audience.
According to Chao’s observation, nearly half of the collectors are from China, and most of the local Hongkongese collectors acquire paintings and calligraphies. However, younger Southeast Asian collectors show up with more diverse tastes. Chao says, for example, a 30-year-old collector bought two pieces of Carolyn Hsu’s artworks with US$400,000 last year.
On the other hand, this is the third time for Project Fulfill Art Space to join the show. Lin Pei-yu, director of Project Fulfill Art Space, says she originally intended to apply for the “Insights” sector this year. However, according to the experience of the last two years, “Art Basel thinks we are ready and asked if we are willing to apply for ‘Galleries,’” says Lin. “It means a lot to us.”
Edited by Olivia Yang
Sources:
China Times
Art Basel
Liberty Times Net
UDN News