In partnership with Asia Art Archive

Venue: Lecture Theatre, Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre
No. of participants: 70 persons, first-come-first-served
Free admission

Talk 1: A Chinoiserie out of the Old West: An Artist Talk by Patty Chang

In 2006, The New York Times described Asian American artist Patty Chang as "one of our most consistently exciting young artists". Born in 1972, Chang is perhaps best known for her work as a performance artist whose unflinching presence on the screen has often elicited discomfort and confusion in the viewer. As the principle subject, Chang's performance works have centered on the body. And her identity as an Asian American woman, though not the artist's initial focus, is also worth noting. Chang was a 2008 finalist for the Hugo Boss Prize, and has exhibited widely in international exhibitions and projects. Her work Flotsam Jetsam (2007) was featured in MoMA's New Directors Series in 2008. Her video installation work shot in China, Shangri-La, debuted at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, Hammer Museum LA and MoCA Chicago in 2005. The Product Love (Die Ware Liebe) recently premiered at Mary Boone Gallery, New York. She lives and works in New York.

In her talk, Chang will discuss her artistic practice, primarily concentrating on the ideas and trajectories behind her latest works.

Speaker: Patty Chang (in English)
Date: 14.10.2009 (Wednesday)
Time: 6:30 — 8:00pm

Talk 2: The Artist as the Storyteller: An Artist Talk by Konstantin Bessmertny

Konstantin Bessmertny is one of the most active Russian artists working in Asia today. His technical mastery, achieved during seven years of studying Fine Art in the grand academies of the former Soviet Union, combined with his detailed knowledge on a wide-range of subjects including literature, music, history and politics, gives his work unique combination of intelligence and a credibility that rarely witnessed in contemporary art. Never formulaic or predictable, Bessmertny uses his works as a means of exploring and experimenting with new ideas, finding inspiration in the bizarrest of places and creating work that continues to challenge and excite preconceived notions. Bessmertny has exhibited widely in various cities such as London, New York, Lisbon, Madrid, Beijing, Hong Kong and Macau. In 2007, he was selected to represent Macau at the 52nd International Venice Biennale.

Bessmertny will begin his talk with his artistic background from the former Soviet Union to today's Macau, and continue with his practices that juxtapose Russian Perestroika Sots Art and Chinese Pop art, attempting to suggest an alternative history of art from his uniquely biographical perspectives.

Speaker: Konstantin Bessmertny (in English)
Date: 11.11.2009 (Wednesday)
Time: 6:30 — 8:00pm

For details of the third and fourth talks in the series, please refer to the next issue of APO Newsletter. Enquiries: Asia Art Archive
Tel: 2815 1112
Email: info@aaaa.org.hk