An Underwater Kingdom (Exhibition review on "Gravitational Currents & The Life Magic" @Empty Gallery)

By -
7 Nov 2018 | Ashley

An Empty Gallery experience is bound to give you the thrill. This one was no exception. But what's special about this time is that you open the doors to a mysterious underwater world. Welcome to Gravitational Currents & The Life Magic, a current exhibition at the Empty Gallery!

Reception @Empty Gallery
Again, like always, there was an ongoing droning sound which captured me that instant I set foot in the reception. Artist Susanne Wintering has placed a multi-channel sound-installation commissioned by Empty Gallery at the centre of the art space, namely Planetary Opera in Three Acts, divided by the currents, 2018. It is a hydrophone recording of algae, green turtles hatching, crabs rubbing their claws together and other ecological marvels. All of that together inevitably gave me an intense sensory reaction, where at times, the track seemed to devour you and snatch you away as the volume increased and disappeared at its climax.

Susanne Winterling, Flags of the Miracular (welcome to the algae empire), 2018 @Empty Gallery

As I moved inwards towards the cooling breeze (I do not know if I imagined it or it was something that the gallery does to secretly creep you out, I think it's just me), I was met with what they call Flags of the Miracular (welcome to the algae empire), 2018. This is an installation of flags with dinoflagellates printed on each of them held on by segments of bamboo. I felt like getting on a Disney ride with the pirates welcoming you to their haunted world of treasure and vice, except this time, I was entering the world of dinoflagellates, mysterious aquatic microorganisms which apparently "bloom" in response to unusually high temperatures or concentrations of pollutants.

Susanne Winterling, Meditation on Terraforming (a tribute to Marie Tharp)/ Shield Warrior For Biodiversity, 2018 @Empty Gallery

As I entered their world, I was specially allured by the beauty of this installation made by suspended fishnets and resin called Meditation on Terraforming (a tribute to Marie Tharp), 2018. The spotlight shined on it from above, giving it a glow. Fishnets are things that we do not pay attention to, perhaps like the ocean of Hong Kong, especially with all these construction projects in recent years taking away the home of sea creatures and oceanic organisms. Yet this installation gave an identity, a glorious one, to these fishnets and the ocean, and with that 3D sand printed green turtle statue calmly resting on it, namely Shield Warrior For Biodiversity, 2018, I could only feel the power of the aquatic world and their own order.

Susanne Winterling, Planetary Loop Of Gravitation, 2018 @Empty Gallery

At this point, with the sounds, the darkness, the flags claiming their territory, and this magnificent installation, I had to succumb to the nature of the world and my own vulnerability as a human being who induced damage on this oceanic beauty. Although I do think that this exhibition, as most exhibitions in Empty Gallery do, is more immersive in a sense that visitors would get distracted by the visuals and atmospheric elements of the display, rather than fully understanding the meaning of simply, "dinoflagellate" or the message of protecting biodiversity and oceanic life, this was again, a wonderful experience which I would not forget.

Props to Empty Gallery for making each journey a memorable one. If you are into an immersive underwater experience, this is a good place to visit!



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Sculptural Book Coming Alive (Performance review of "Tree of Codes" @ New Vision Arts Festival)

By -
Image
13 Nov 2018 | Ashley There we go, the New Vision Arts Festival is back! One of its opening shows this year is Tree of Codes , a ballet performance performed by Company Wayne McGregor and guests. It was a multi-media performance, which incorporated not only dance, but visual arts, music and lights. Display @ Hong Kong Cultural Centre In fact, the name of the show,  Tree of Codes, is borrowed from a sculptural book by Jonathan Safran Foer, where he cut off words from the original book Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz and constructed another story. The show did a good job creating the illusion of layering, just as how Foer's book looks like. With colourful filters which separated the stage into a front section and a back section, and dancers moving behind and in front, mirroring one another a uniform choreography, it gave me the illusion that the dancers at the back were reflections of the ones in front. The bright colors chosen for the filters also gave this piece ...
Read more

How to: Eat at a Wet Market Cooked Food Center

By -
Image
12 Sep 2018 | Veronica They’re loud, they’re chaotic, and potentially very overwhelming (especially if you have bad memories of your high school cafeteria). They’re also very cheap, very fast, and usually delicious! 1. Getting There Cooked food centers are usually on the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th floor of a wet market. So getting into a cooked food center might involve passing through the wet market. This means past the half-alive fish and hanging meat butchers’ stalls. Still have your appetite? Good. Read on. *TIP: most centers will have an entrance (stairwell or elevator area) that leads directly to the cooked food center. Use this to skip the wet market sensory overload! 2. Choosing a Restaurant and Finding a Table Inside, each restaurant has their own designated tables. Take a tour around and peer at what people are eating. When you find something that looks good to you, find a space at a table in that area and squeeze in! There’s no private dining in here – if there’s any spa...
Read more

4 Must-Have Apps for Life in Hong Kong

By -
Image
29 Aug 2018 | Veronica Delete those photos from 3 years ago, get rid of that ex’s phone number that is just bad news in your phone anyways, do whatever you need to make space for these 4 apps to get you through daily life in Hong Kong. 1. Google Translate Don’t be scared to walk into restaurants with all-Chinese menus! Download Google Translate and get live translations just by holding your phone over the characters. Granted, the translations are far from perfect but it can usually help to know the basic idea. 2. TakeTaxi-HK Taxi Translator This app lets you to type in your destination in English, and then get large print translation for you to show the taxi driver. Future update is promised to include phonetic pronunciation for you to learn the Cantonese names! 3. Moovit Bypass Google Maps for Moovit in Hong Kong. Get more accurate route suggestions and live updates about bus arrival time for all the different transit companies in the city (although you’re...
Read more