Paolo Gioli

The other day I saw a short film programme of the Hong Kong International Film Festival. These years I am far less enthusiastic about the HKIFF for different reasons. It was really long ago that I could see 5 shows a day and very likely I fell asleep in a couple of them!
Anyway, I went to this show this year mainly because of Paolo Gioli, in my own words, crazy great artist who could make a camera out of anything. He was one of the photographers who did workshop with us back in the days of Spilimbergo in Italy almost 20 years ago. Years after, I did a few projects of pinhole camera probably because of him. But then I didn't learn about him as a film maker.
Back to the show, to my surprise it was a very small audience, about 30% full of Agnes B Cinema in the Hong Kong Arts Centre. I hope the film makers from Austria & Japan who specially came to this screening of their short films were not disappointed. The title of the programme was Avant Garde Programme II which was a bit misleading. Actually a few of films in this screening were more about photographic gaze, the very basic nature of photography. Gioli showed a new film I volti dell'anonimo which was made of a found footage with a lot of found still inserts. It was my first time to see his film work which is actually consistent with his photography, exploring the intriguing link between presence, history and photography. A lot of accidental poetics!
I am too outdated: actually Gioli was an artist-in-focus of the HKIFF in 2007!

Future Images

Cresci, Mario (ed), Future Images, Milan: Motta, 2010


Domestica Invisibile in P.160-P.161

She was lost in the past and we found her today.

Site-specific installation (conceptual illustration above) by Leung Chi Wo & Sara Wong, vinyl sticker on glass, Yaguchinowatashi Station, Tamagawa Line, Tokyo, 2010

Shopping street at Yaguchinowatashi (right next to the station), Tokyo, 1955

Opening programme, Tamagawa Art Line Project 2010

I was the interviewee!

Chen Shun-chu 陳順築

It was a time the artistic practice of Taiwanese artists was such a good reference for me. Perhaps it was the hit time when everybody was talking about cultural identity. And Chen Shun-chu's work was always cited. My vague memory recalls someone had even said this was the Taiwan's answer to Boltanski. Above all, I really like his work. 14 years ago when I for the first time visited Taipei, I got his contacts from perhaps IT Park. And he did show up and chatted with us. Back then I was only a student and you already saw his work featured in international magazine. Then you could imagine his generosity and openness to others. He was very gentle, somehow you might like to relate to his work. I also remember his work in the exhibition Inside Out (curated by Gao Minglu) of predominantly mainland Chinese artists in the Hong Kong Museum of Art. From the first glance at his work, you could a;ready tell he's no mainland Chinese artist!
He also did a solo show in Hong Kong almost ten years ago. It was a beautiful exhibition but not very well attended unfortunately. Was it the indifference of our community then? Not sure, but if it's yes, perhaps it's also our indifference in general to contemporary art.
Anyway, this time it shouldn't be missed!

Art's Birthday

Next monday is Art's Birthday, declared by Robert Filliou.

Economy Class

It's been amazing to see how video has changed the art world. With a small fund and online resources like UbuWeb and Video Data Bank, you can curate an "international" exhibition of artists like John Baldessari, Francis Alys and Gary Hill, etc. With lesser known local artists, thanks to the light-weighted DVDs, international touring exhibition means only a page of installation instruction, a small package and free of insurance. Para/Site's This is Hong Kong is a typical example. It's been exhibited in Barcelona, Seoul, Hamburg, Birmingham, Berlin, and of course Hong Kong; and on its way to Taipei and Vienna.