(HKAC) has been dedicated to engaging the community with contemporary art and culture in Hong Kong and abroad for over 35 years. To continue the well- established tradition of promoting contemporary Asian art and artists, the HKAC is pleased to present its 5th annual flagship exhibition Distilling Senses: A Journey through Art and Technology in Asian Contemporary Art, which takes place from 11 December 2013 to 12 January 2014 at the HKAC’s Pao Galleries. Following the success of the previous exhibitions, Ms. Cissy Pao Pui Lai, BBS, the initiator of the flagship exhibition series, alongside Ms. Connie Lam co-curate the exhibition, showcasing the works of nine Asian artists/art group including Mr. Chang Yung Ta (Taiwan), Ms. Shilpa Gupta (India), Mr. Takashi Ishida (Japan), Mr. Lee Yongbaek (Korea), Mr. Nam June Paik (Korea), teamLab (Japan), Mr. Wang Ningde (China), Mr. Wong Chung Yu (Hong Kong) and Mr. Samson Young (Hong Kong)

Over the last few decades, Asia has been the location where much new technology has been created and consumed. How does this greater environment affect artists from the region? The exhibition is a journey that explores how technology shapes art and how artists use technology to sharpen our senses and enhance our understanding of our surroundings. The exhibition features masterpiece by Nam June Paik, the renowned Korean-born artist who pioneered the genre of ‘video art’ in the 1960s. Juxtapositions of interaction and introspection continue throughout the exhibition: participatory works by Japan’s ultra-technology group teamLab, Taiwan’s Chang Yung Ta and Korea’s Lee Yongbaek are pitched against meditative pieces by China’s Wang Ningde and Japan’s Takashi Ishida. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Wong Chung Yu reappraises the traditional mode of Chinese ink painting, and India’s Shilpa Gupta and Hong Kong’s Samson Young offer specific social commentary on city living and city space. The works exhibited employ diverse media, from digital to interactive installation, offering the viewer an insight into the sheer possibilities that can result in a marriage between technology and art.

-Hong Kong Arts Centre

Image: © Chang Yung Ta
Signal Flow 2.1,
2011-2012,
Bulb lamp, speaker, computer and DMX controller,
400 × 280 × 480 cm