Wave of galleries breaks into Hong Kong in 2013

With the first edition of Art Basel Hong Kong coming soon, the city’s gallery scene is growing in size and diversity.

Since the autumn of 2012, a rush of galleries has entered the Hong Kong contemporary art scene, bringing a variety of art from Middle Eastern artists to contemporary works on paper to a fine art investment firm/gallery. Several major international players are also entering the market.

A vast exhibition area for Yallay Space in Hong Kong's Aberdeen location.

Fabio Rossi and Jean Marc Decrop launch Yallay Space

Rossi & Rossi gallerist Fabio Rossi has teamed up with Asian contemporary art specialist Jean-Marc Decrop to launch a new gallery, Yallay Space, which opened in Aberdeen, Hong Kong on 19 January 2013. The gallery will feature artwork by contemporary artists from all over the region, from East Asia to the Middle East.

According to a newsletter posted on Rossi & Rossi’s website, Yallay hopes to reforge ancient connections between the Middle East and East Asia, comparing the venture to a “contemporary silk road for the 21st century”. True to their vision, the inaugural exhibition will include artists from nineteen nations as diverse as Kazakhstan and Australia.

Read: ”Changing global retail landscape: Can Hong Kong art galleries adapt?” Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

Lehmann Maupin sets date for Hong Kong

Though they first announced a move to Hong Kong in the middle of 2012, Lehmann Maupin have set a date: they will open a gallery in the historic Pedder Building on 14 March 2013. The gallery’s first show will feature new work by Korean artist Lee Bul. They will also launch a second show in May 2013 to coincide with Art Basel Hong Kong 2013. The group exhibition explores how Eastern and Western artists treat writing and language.

Exhibition front for Hong Kong's Artify Gallery.

Artify Gallery: Hong Kong’s premier gallery for works on paper

Located in the Ming Po Industrial Centre in Chai Wan, Artify Gallery specialises in prints and contemporary art on paper. The gallery opened on 6 December 2012 with Malaysian artist Eiffel Chong’s first exhibition in Hong Kong. Entitled “This Used to Be My Playground”, the show featured photographs of an abandoned Hong Kong fishing village in Tai O. In addition to their gallery space and public programming, Artify will house extensive printmaking facilities. They hope to collaborate with established and emerging contemporary artists on limited-edition projects and other works on paper.

Listen: “Hong Kong art auction, gallery scene breakdown – ArtTactic podcast“

Shanghai’s Studio Rouge opens third space

First established in Shanghai in 2004 by Australia-Eurasian curator George Michell, contemporary Chinese art gallery Studio Rouge opened their first non-mainland branch in the fall of 2012. (They had previously opened a second space in Shanghai’s M50 gallery district in 2006.)

Their Hong Kong space on Hollywood Road debuted with the exhibition “Ruby, Rowy, Rhino, Rock Hong Kong!” on 22 September 2012, marking the eighth anniversary of the gallery. The show consisted of 26 emerging contemporary artists, including both Chinese and international artists working on the mainland.

Collins & Kent International's new Hong Kong exhibition space.

Fine art investment company Collins & Kent International

Collins & Kent International is an art investment firm that first launched in Sydney in 1999. Today it has a branch in Singapore and, as of September 2012, Hong Kong. While the gallery specialises in works on paper from masters like Picasso, Rembrandt, Matisse, Warhol as well as contemporary blue-chip artists like Damien Hirst, they have plans to expand their roster. According to HK Magazine Online, the gallery also intends to start collecting contemporary Chinese art. Though entry into the space is typically by appointment only, they also offer public programming and guided tours of their exhibitions on select days.

Damon Dash plans to expand DD172 art franchise

American music producer turned art and fashion aficionado, Damon Dash, recently announced that he plans to open two new franchises of his Poppington Art Gallery in New York City, South Carolina and Hong Kong. The galleries will operate under Dash’s art and media collective, DD172. Details on the move are sparse.

PR/KN/HH

Related Topics: market watch – galleries, art in Hong Kong

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• Green Cardamom to close London gallery, move to Hong Kong – August 2012 – another major art institution opens in Hong Kong
• Top 10 Hong Kong art gallery picks – The Guardian – July 2012 – the British paper picks its top ten galleries in Hong Kong
• China Guardian to host first Hong Kong auctions in October 2012 - July 2012 – China Guardian’s sale was a huge success, with many comparisons to Sotheby’s relatively poor results
• Changing global retail landscape: Can Hong Kong galleries adapt? Part I - June 2012 - Art Radar founder Kate Cary Evans asseses the Hong Kong gallery scene in a three-part article
• Contemporary galleries face intense competition, must re-think game plan - January 2011 – with a burgeoning gallery scene in Hong Kong comes fierce competition

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