31 sculptures will be installed at both street level and building tops across a kilometre wide zone of Central and Western district.
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10 November 2015 (HONG KONG) – Installation of Event Horizon by British artist Antony Gormley begins tomorrow, Wednesday 11 November 2015. Hong Kongers will be able to see the first sculptures at City Hall, Hip Shing Hong Centre, New World Tower and St. George’s Building.
Event Horizon officially launches on 19 November 2015, and will be a part of the Hong Kong cityscape for six months, until 18 May 2016. The most extensive public art installation ever seen in the city, Event Horizon will see 31 sculptures installed at both street level and building tops across a kilometre wide zone of Central and Western district.
“The principal dynamic of the work is the relationship between imagination and the horizon, involving the citizen in a game of seeking and perhaps finding. Beyond those figures that you can actually see, how many more are out of sight? I hope that through the work we will look at the city, its relationship to its natural surroundings and the language of the buildings themselves: colonial, corporate, institutional, public and their dialogue one with the other. One of the functions of the work is to make us more aware of the texture and meaning of the environment around us” says artist Antony Gormley.
Presented by British Council Hong Kong with support from lead partner the K11 Art Foundation (KAF), Hong Kong will be the first Asian city to stage the installation following presentations in London, Rotterdam, New York, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
“We invite people of all walks of life to appreciate the art installation. When we look up and see the sculptures, we are encouraged to stop, engage, and perhaps reflect on our individual position in this wonderful city by looking more consciously within ourselves,” says Robert Ness, Director of British Council Hong Kong.
The installation will be complemented with a strong education and outreach programme which includes dedicated activities and support tools for students, teachers and the general public. The aim is to encourage discussion of art in the city and development of skills such as creative thinking, critical thinking and visual literacy. For details of all Event Horizon education and outreach activities in Hong Kong, visit www.eventhorizon.hk.
Adrian Cheng, Founder and Honorary Chairman of the K11 Art Foundation and Lead partner added: “With less than weeks from launch, we are now seeing this project develop from plans on paper to the physical realm, as individual sculptures and soon to be unveiled in their entirety. This project and the experience it provides we believe can enhance the living experience of Hong Kong’s inhabitants - whether people are visiting or call it home. A historic moment for the City, to break down barriers and have art for all to enjoy.”
International structural engineering consultants Atkins have been appointed for the installation of Event Horizon in Hong Kong, with project management by AECOM. The installation is of thirty-one identical sculptures. The installation comprises 31 identical sculptures: four 630kg cast iron sculptures at ground-level and twenty-seven 30kg fibreglass sculptures mounted at rooftops.
The installation methodology was approved by Building Department, Architectural Services Department, Leisure and Cultural Services Department, and other relevant departments were informed and consulted.
Presenters
Event Horizon in Hong Kong is presented by British Council Hong Kong with support from lead partner K11 Art Foundation and sponsors GAW Capital Partners, Grosvenor, Christie's, Hogan Lovells, Howard Bilton of The Sovereign Art Foundation, Central Saint Martin /Kai-Yin Lo Cross Culture Lecture, Dynamic Network Alliances, Mazarine Asia Pacific, Icicle Group and Sinclair Communications.
Event Horizon education and outreach programme is supported by M+, West Kowloon Cultural District, Asia Arts Archive, the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Hong Kong, PMQ, Asia Society Hong Kong and Youth Arts Foundation.
Event Horizon supporting organisations include JIA Group, Perrier Jouët, The Financial Times, Time Out Hong Kong, Art Map and Art Plus.
- The installation map of Event Horizon in Hong Kong is purposefully designed without building names or exact locations of the sculptures so as to encourage Hong Kongers to seek and explore. It is a journey for discovery, as individuals see their city in a new light through searching for and engaging with the works. #LookUpHK and share images on social media.
- Event Horizon will officially launch in Hong Kong on 19 November 2015.
- All education activities are free of charge
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About Antony Gormley
Antony Gormley’s work has been widely exhibited throughout the UK and internationally with exhibitions at Forte di Belvedere, Florence (2015); Zentrum Paul Klee, Bern (2014); Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia (2012); Deichtorhallen, Hamburg (2012); The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg (2011); Kunsthaus Bregenz, Austria (2010); Hayward Gallery, London (2007); Malmö Konsthall, Sweden (1993) and Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark (1989). Permanent public works include the Angel of the North (Gateshead, England), Another Place (Crosby Beach, England), Inside Australia (Lake Ballard, Western Australia) and Exposure (Lelystad, The Netherlands).
Gormley was awarded the Turner Prize in 1994, the South Bank Prize for Visual Art in 1999, the Bernhard Heiliger Award for Sculpture in 2007, the Obayashi Prize in 2012 and the Praemium Imperiale in 2013. In 1997 he was made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) and was made a knight in the New Year’s Honours list in 2014. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, an Honorary Doctor of the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Trinity and Jesus Colleges, Cambridge. Gormley has been a Royal Academician since 2003.
Antony Gormley was born in London in 1950.
About the K11 Art Foundation
Adrian Cheng established the K11 Art Foundation (KAF) in 2010. The K11 Art Foundation is a registered non-profit organisation that advances the development of Chinese contemporary art by providing a creative incubation platform to nurture artistic talent in Greater China and showcase the work of young emerging artists to a broader audience around the world. The K11 Art Foundation has embarked on cross-region, creative collaborations to introduce Chinese talents in Asia and globally and to showcase their full potential. Through researches, initiatives and partnerships, as well as harnessing the passion and energy of participants, KAF makes available to the public a diverse array of programs and exhibitions to educate and raise collective appreciation of art and culture. The K11 art village (artist-in-residence program) in Wuhan offers a space and platform for young artists to create and present their works.
Following on from previous UK partnerships with the British Council, Central Saint Martins, Cornerhouse HOME and Performing Arts Group, Brighter Sound the Foundation has collaborated with the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in London to present Chinese artist Zhang Ding, with the exhibition of Enter the Dragon, opening October 2015. The K11 Art Foundation is also delighted to continue its partnership with Palais de Tokyo in Paris by co-producing a second exhibition, the solo exhibition of Tianzhuo Chen. Also, in July 2015 the foundation announced a major research partnership with Centre Pompidou in Paris.
Finally, KAF in partnership with Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation will co-curate the Surrealist exhibition Media— Dalí held at Shanghai's chi K11 art museum, in dialogue with established and emerging contemporary Chinese artists to open in from 5 November 2015 to 15 February 2016.
Please join the conversation with K11 Art Foundation on Instagram (@K11ArtFoundation), Facebook, Weibo via the hashtag #k11ArtFoundation #KAF
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