Hong Kong Art Basel 2019

On March 28, 2019, the seventh edition of Art Basel returned to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center to present artwork from more than half of the galleries in the Asia-Pacific region. This year, the AISG IB Art students visited the art fair with Ms. Mora and Dr. Escalante-Mead.

The juniors met at AISG’s Ersha Campus in the morning and arrived at the train station at 7:50 a.m. The seniors joined the group at Starbucks in the station. On our way to Hong Kong, the students and the teachers had a hot debate about the lunch menu. Regardless of Ms. Mora’s dissent, most of the students voted for the Shake Shack, a popular American burger chain.

It took around ten to fifteen minutes to walk from Shake Shack to the Convention Center. With a total of 242 galleries presenting artwork in the Convention Center, the place was booming with visitors and artists. According to China Daily, Hong Kong Art Basel attracted more than 88,000 visitors. The visitors were from all parts of the world. However, the majority of them were Chinese, Korean, and American.

After verifying our tickets at the entrance, students were free to explore the exhibition hall. There were hundreds of artworks on each floor. One of the most fascinating parts of Art Basel is that people can view different types of art all in one area. There were installation art pieces, paintings, photographs, illustrations, sculptures, and prints displayed. My favorite piece was “Ice Crackle – 3,4” made by Su Xiaobai, who is one of China’s most distinctive painters. He has developed his own style of art using wood, lacquer, and oil paint. Xiaobai’s works are very abstract and mystical. What I like the most about his works is that his art embraces the idea of “being oneself.” The sherbet colors he uses also makes me feel calm and serene.

Art Basel was really helpful because students could see artwork from the artists they like or are interested in. Jee Su K., a senior who attended the fair, said that “it creates an opportunity for people to meet different kinds of artists and definitely see different styles of art. What I personally liked about Art Basel is that I could see actual artworks done by famous artists, such as, Egon Schiele and Nam June.”

On the way back, the students bought cookies and noodles for dinner. Art Basel is one of the biggest art fairs in the world. Visiting it can provide lots of opportunities to students, especially those who are interested in art-related majors. Most of our students enjoyed the trip and were glad to attend. Jee Su said, “Our school should definitely plan this trip every year because it really allows students to experience something new. It motivates students to become creative and experimental. For me personally, this trip allowed me to know more about myself as an artist, it was a chance for me to further discover what kind of art style I liked and brainstorm new ideas for my future art projects.”