Weekly News Roundup: June 30, 2022

Chinese Curatorial Duo to Spearhead Yokohama Triennale 2023

On June 30, the Organizing Committee for Yokohama Triennale named artist Liu Ding and art historian Carol Yinghua Lu as artistic directors of the upcoming Yokohama Triennale, which is scheduled to run from December 9, 2023 to March 10, 2024. The curator couple have not revealed the theme and concept but according to the announcement, “their curation seeks out kernels of wisdom for surviving the present in both the minutiae of individual endeavor and the grand turning points of history.” Liu’s research-based approach spans text, photography, installation, painting, performance, and other media. One of his most recent projects “From the Issue of Art to the Issue of Position: The Echoes of Socialist Realism” (2014– ), in collaboration with Lu, features sculptures and oil-based collages that delve into the artistic style and influences of Socialist Realism in 20th-century China. Lu most recently curated Wang Youshen’s solo exhibition at Beijing’s Inside-Out Art Museum as the museum director. Previously she led Shenzhen’s OCAT from 2012 to 2015 and served as co-artistic director at Gwangju Biennale 2012. Since 2007, Liu and Lu started collaborating on curatorial projects at numerous institutions across China, including the Art Museum of Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and Beijing 798 Creative. They’ve also worked on several art festivals such as Trans-Southeast Asia Triennial 2021, Anren Biennale 2017, and Shenzhen Sculpture Biennale 2012.

Self-Portrait During Lockdown Wins Australia’s Portrait Award

Named after Gordon Darling, one of the founding patrons of Canberra’s National Portrait Gallery, the Darling Portrait Prize 2022 awarded its AUD 75,000 (USD 52,000) prize to Melbourne-based painter and book illustrator Jaq Grantford for her somber self-portrait 2020 (2020). The realist oil painting portrays her interlocked hands obscuring her face while striking, emotive eyes emerge under dishevelled pre-chemo blond hair unceremoniously tangled with paintbrushes. Through the painting, Grantford encapsulates a narrative of shared disheartenment from Covid lockdowns and, in her words, “the guilty pleasure as an artist where the noise around you just stops and you can just breathe a little bit.” Founded in 2020, the national prize has only been awarded for the second time this year due to Covid interruptions.

Hong Kong’s Fringe Club Faces Unknown Future

Fringe Club, a nonprofit arts and cultural venue in Central, Hong Kong, is facing difficulties to continue as they might not be able to renew their lease, which will end in March 2023. Over the past three years, their operations have suffered from protests and pandemic restrictions. According to director Benny Chia, it would be difficult to find an alternative location before the termination of the lease. The 19th-century building was once the Old Dairy Farm Depot and the only venue that Fringe Club has ever rented since its establishment in 1983. To honor their four-decade history, the Club curated a group exhibition titled “Be 40,” the first show that utilizes the three-story space entirely but also potentially the last show of the Club. Featuring 66 artists who have once exhibited at the venue, such as Antonio Mak, Chan Sai Lok, Leung Mee Ping, and Yeung Tong Lung, the exhibition also dedicated the second floor to Frog King, who worked with the Fringe Club for Hong Kong’s presentation at the Venice Biennale 2011. The exhibition ends today. Fringe Club has been a destination for contemporary art exhibitions, literature events, and music performances.  

• Yokohama Triennale
• Darling Portrait Prize
• Hong Kong Fringe Club