Weekly News Roundup: April 11, 2025
By THE EDITORS
Portrait of ARIC CHEN. Photo by Marwan Magroun. Courtesy the Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam.
Aric Chen to Depart From Nieuwe Instituut
On April 2, Aric Chen announced his resignation as general and artistic director of the Rotterdam-based Nieuwe Instituut, after serving a four-year tenure. He is set to leave the cultural center on June 27, taking on a new role as the director of London’s Zaha Hadid Foundation. Under Chen’s leadership, the Nieuwe Instituut expanded its national and international profile through various technology-focused projects, such as Zoöp—a first-of-its-kind organizational model inclusive of “the voices and interests of nonhuman life,” according to the organization’s website. In a press release, Chen stated: “I’m grateful for these four incredible years at Nieuwe Instituut, and for the exceptional colleagues, collaborators, and supporters who have taken this very special place to where it is today. . . . There is no institution in the world quite like Nieuwe Instituut, and I will sorely miss it.” While the organization searches for a successor, Chen will remain in his role to finalize ongoing projects before his departure.
View of BADIUCAO’s video displayed on a billboard in Mong Kok, Hong Kong. Courtesy Hong Kong Free Press.
Chinese Dissident Artist Performs Video Stunt On Hong Kong Billboards
On April Fool’s Day, a video by Chinese Australian dissident artist Badiucao was screened on large outdoor billboards at two locations in Hong Kong’s bustling neighbourhood of Mong Kok. The four-second black and white video showed Badiucao silently mouthing “you must take part in revolution”—a line taken from On Practice, a 1937 essay by the late Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong. The video was submitted under the pseudonym Andy Chou, as part of the public art project “Luminance,” initiated by Milan’s Art Innovation Gallery to coincide with Art Basel Hong Kong. An unsigned email from the gallery stated: “The artist gave us false information in order to be admitted to the exhibition and I find it really low.” Badiucao shared the stunt with his 55,000 Instagram followers, and the video was removed from the billboards less than 24 hours later.
Portrait of SHEELA GOWDA. Photo by BR Vishwanath. Courtesy Artforum.
Sheela Gowda Wins 2025 Sam Gilliam Award
The Dia Art Foundation and Sam Gilliam Foundation have jointly awarded its 2025 Sam Gilliam Award to Bangalore-based artist Sheela Gowda. The annual prize, established in 2023, honors individuals who have “made a significant contribution to art and for whom receiving the award would be transformative.” Gowda is famed for her large-scale installations and often uses humble materials such as cow dung, tar drums, hair, and incense to explore labor, gender, and sociopolitical issues. In a press release, Dia’s director Jessica Morgan praised Gowda for the “complexity and scale” of her work, which also reflects the artist’s lived experience in “a cultural and geographic context that is underrepresented in the [US].” As part of the award, Gowda will receive USD 75,000 and a feature on Dia’s public art program later this year.
View of Hong Kong Museum of Art. Courtesy Hong Kong Museum of Art.
M+ Replaced as the Organizer of Venice Biennale’s 2026 Hong Kong Pavilion
For the first time since 2013, M+ museum will be replaced by another local institution as the organizer of the 61st Venice Biennale’s Hong Kong Pavilion. Instead, the Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC)—whose members are appointed by the government—has decided to select the Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMOA) as its new partner to oversee the procedure. Rather than exhibiting the work of an individual artist, as M+ has done in previous years, HKADC will feature a group selected from over 200 entries. This includes artists who have received commissions from the city’s government-run museums or offices, which the HKADC hopes will “promote traditional Chinese culture and Hong Kong’s own special characteristics,” according to the council’s vice chairman Frankie Yeung Wai-shing. In a statement, M+ thanked the council for the “years of trust,” and for providing local artists with the opportunity to participate in the renowned international art event.
View of White Bay Power Station, Sydney. Photo by Brett Boardman. Courtesy the Biennale of Sydney.
The Biennale of Sydney Announces Details of 2026 Edition
Set to take place from March 14 to June 14 next year, the Biennale of Sydney’s 25th edition will be hosted—for the second time—at the recently refurbished White Bay Power Station, a former coal plant that is now one of the city’s major art and culture venues. Additionally, the Biennale announced Bruce Johnson McLean—a Canberra-based curator, writer, and cultural policy consultant—as the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain First Nations curatorial fellow. A member of the Wierdi people of Wribpid, McLean is one of Australia’s leading voices on First Nations art and culture, and brings over 25 years of industry experience to the role. In a press release, the 2026 Biennale of Sydney’s artistic director Hoor Al Qasimi underlined her intention to cultivate “a dynamic and inclusive festival [reflecting] the diversity of contemporary artistic voices,” while expressing her eagerness to work alongside McLean and event organizers “to create an edition that is deeply rooted in connection, history, and the transformative power of art.”
