Media

HKU to present Long Service Awards to staff members 
The President of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) Professor Mathieson will present long service awards to 153 staff members of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) to thank them for their loyalty and contributions to the University in a ceremony to be held on February 26 (Thursday).

Among 153 staff members, nine members will receive the longest 40-year service award.

Details of the award presentation ceremony are as follows:
Date: February 26, 2015 (Thursday)
Time: 4:00 pm
Venue: Loke Yew Hall, Main Building, HKU

For media enquiries, please contact Ms Trinni Choy (Assistant Director (Media), Communications and Public Affairs Office) Tel: 2859 2606, email: pychoy@hku.hk or Ms Rhea Leung (Manager (Media), Communications and Public Affairs Office) Tel: 2857 8555, email: rhea.leung@hku.hk.

Exhibitions at UMAG
1. “The real” in the eyes of artists in “Desiring the Real: Austria Contemporary Art”

Period: February 18, 2015 (Wednesday) to March 22, 2015 (Sunday)

“Desiring the Real: Austria Contemporary Art” is an exhibition of Austria contemporary art held from February 18 to March 22, 2015. This thematic exhibition presents contemporary artworks by 25 Austrian artists who investigate, through images and installations, representations of ‘the real’, and the subjective perception of reality by individual onlookers.

“Desiring the Real” is an assemblage of individual views of daily life and the environment, this exhibition presents a variety of ‘portraits’ documenting the status quo at the precise moment that each image was created. In “Desiring the Real”, one medium, such as film or video art, can take on the artistic qualities of another art form, such as Chinese ink painting, as shown in the fluid and expressive video installation Cluster (2010) by Rainer Gamsjäger. Through representations of the real, the perception of the receiving persons and their individual paradigms are critical to the understanding of the real and to the judgment of reality. This remarkable concept was originally commissioned by the Federal Chancellery of Austria in 2012, and has since been shown in modern and contemporary art museums in Serbia, Mexico, Cuba, Croatia, Italy, Turkey, Macedonia and France. UMAG and the Federal Chancellery of Austria, with the support by the Austrian Consulate General in Hong Kong and Macao, have jointly organised this large and innovative presentation in Hong Kong which also marks its East Asian premiere.

2. “Silent Poetry: Chinese Contemporary Ink”: an imaginary sound of ink paintings

Period: February 11, 2015 (Wednesday) to March 17, 2015 (Tuesday)

“Silent Poetry” showcases Chinese ink paintings as if they are beautiful poems which contain no words and sound. Unlike so many of the mass-produced popular artworks today, these Chinese contemporary ink paintings differ from their traditional counterparts in terms of their form, style and techniques. Contemporary ink paintings challenge some concepts of traditional Chinese paintings and individual artists apply unconventional mediums, materials and tools to change the traditional painting practice and to break constraints while preserving their profound values at the same time.

Ink has long been a widely used medium in Chinese art, while ink painting is one of China’s oldest and best known art forms. From the May Fourth Movement to the 1990s, ink art has been reformed and transformed greatly. It attained substantial developments and has gradually attested to its maturity. Nowadays, Chinese contemporary ink paintings are appreciated internationally, in China as well as the global art world.

To tie in with the exhibition, a wide range of activities including workshops entitled “Drawing in the Gallery (Family Class)” and “Artistic Creation: From Photo to Painting” will be held on February 28, 2015 and March 7, 2015 respectively; while an academic lecture entitled “Chinese Contemporary Ink Paintings on transformation, curation and collecting” will be held on March 14, 2015 to enhance the public’s knowledge of and interest in contemporary ink paintings.

This exhibition and related activities are co-organised by the UMAG and Chinese Modern & Contemporary Art Document (CCAD) with the support of HKU, CAFA ART INFO, the Chinese Contemporary Art Promotion Centre (CCAP), Art Nova 100 and the Beijing Strategic Cultural Development Co. Ltd. Participating artists include Chen Jun, Du Xiao-tong, Hao Shi-ming, Li Wei, Pan Wen-xun, Sun Hao, Xu Hua-ling, Xu Jia-cun and Zhu Zheng-ming.

UMAG opening hours:
09:30am – 6:00 pm(Mon to Sat)
1:00 – 6:00pm (Sun)
Closed on University and Public Holidays

Venue: 1/F Fung Ping Shan Building, University Museum and Art Gallery, the University of Hong Kong, 90 Bonham Road, Pokfulam
Tel/Email: (852) 2241 5500 (General Enquiry) / museum@hku.hk
Fees: Free Admission
Website: www.hkumag.hku.hk

Media enquiries:
UMAG Communication Officer Miss Elena Cheung, Tel: (852) 2241 5512, Email: elenac@hku.hk    

Guided tours for schools
UMAG exhibitions will involve dedicated education and outreach activities. The museum welcomes all school groups as well as tertiary institutions to request guided tours led by trained docents during our touring hours (Monday-Saturday, 09:30 – 17:00). Guided tours are available in English, Cantonese and Mandarin. To request an appointment, please contact Miss Elena Cheung on 2241-5512 or elenac@hku.hk for booking and further information.

The Vitality of the Year of Horse － Selected Works of Professor Jao Tsung-i
In the last month of the year of Horse, “The Vitality of the Year of Horse — Selected Works of Professor Jao Tsung-i” is launched by the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole of the University of Hong Kong, presenting his lotus painting and calligraphy accomplished in 2014. In the Year of Horse, Professor Jao revealed tremendous creativity in his art creations, particularly in lotus painting. Professor Jao is capable of rendering the subject with a free mind without violating the principles of sentiment and appearance of the flower. Most of his lotus paintings in the first quarter of 2014 are included in the publication Opulence of the Jao’s Lotus, and those painted in the other three seasons are the major displayed works in this exhibition.

Though this exhibition displays only about twenty items, it demonstrates various types of Professor Jao’s lotus painting, and reflecting his profound observation of the principle, sentiment, and appearance of the flower.  Professor Jao always said that he is actually “realizing the images of lotus conceived in his mind”, and he especially puts emphasis on the spirit of lotus described by Zhou Dunyi of the Song dynasty as the “Gentleman among Flowers”. That is the reason why his lotus is different from that of Xu Wei, Chen Chun, Chen Hongshou of the Ming dynasty, Jin Nong of the Qing dynasty, and the contemporary masters, such as Qi Baishi, Chang Dai-chien, and Yu Feian.

The theme of this exhibition presents the spirit and liveliness of Professor Jao’s lotus painting, and therefore it is entitled “The Vitality of the Year of Horse”.

Date:           February 9, 2015 to February 27, 2015
Time:          10am to 5pm (Mon to Fri)
                    (closed on public holidays & university holidays)
Venue:        Jao Tung-I Petite Ecole, The University of Hong Kong (Tang Chi Ngong Building, HKU)
Telephone:  3917 5598