Adeline Ooi Appointed Director Asia for Art Basel
By Denise Chu
Portrait of Adeline Ooi. Courtesy Art Basel.
On December 30, 2014, Art Basel announced the appointment of Adeline Ooi as its new Director Asia. Having previously managed the organization’s VIP relations in Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, Ooi has replaced Magnus Renfrew, who left his post in September 2014. In her role as Director Asia, she will oversee Art Basel Hong Kong and ensure a strong Asian presence throughout Art Basel’s international activities.
A curator and writer, Ooi has been active in various capacities throughout the Southeast Asian region. She directed RogueArt, a Kuala Lumpur-based art advisory and cultural agency that she co-founded to produce and manage art projects. Previously, she was curator and program director at Valentine Willie Fine Art’s main space in Kuala Lumpur, prior to its closure in 2014. Ooi’s recent curating projects have included “Media/Art Kitchen” (2013), a new-media exhibition supported by the Japan Foundation that traveled across multiple venues in Southeast Asia, and “Turning Targets #5 – Dobrak!” (2013), a group show that featured cross-disciplinary projects by Indonesian artists at Yogyarkarta’s Cemeti Art House. Ooi has also worked with Indonesian and Filipino non-profit organizations, such as Indonesia Visual Art Archive.
At the Art Basel Hong Kong press conference on January 6, 2015, Art Basel director Marc Spiegler noted that Ooi “has exactly the background needed for a fair director. She’s dealt with every sector of the market, and she knows what they need and how they interrelate with each other. What we do as an art fair is to bring all of these sectors together and create productive exchanges.” Ooi also stated that her “focus for the initials months as Director Asia will be on supporting the team in delivering the upcoming show in Hong Kong,” and is looking forward to applying her experience in the new role.
Art Basel Hong Kong will take place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from March 15 to 17, 2015.
