Artron News
Galerie Ora-Ora is proud to celebrate the opening of the new space in the H Queen’s building with an inaugural exhibition that explores the contrasts and harmonies of art and literature. The first exhibition kicks-off the gallery’s 2018 programme in the new venue that utilises the natural light of the 17th floor, and all the features of this purpose-built building for galleries.
Opening on March 1, Screaming Books, the literature-themed group exhibition features eight contemporary Chinese and Hong Kong artists including Halley Cheng, Hung Keung, Peng Jian, Peng Wei, Xiao Xu, Xu Lei, Zhang Yanzi together with an iconic calligraphy graffiti work by Tsang Tsou- Choi, the “King of Kowloon”. Influenced by ancient and classical literature famed in Chinese and Western references, the gallery’s first show for the year asserts the universality of art, exploring its aptitude for unfettered expression, emotions and meanings.
The exhibition title partly originates from Alexander Rodchenko’s poster of a Russian writer and socialite Lilya Brik screaming “Books!”, a cry of union between art and words. Screaming Books asserts the universal power of the image, distilled into a coherent group showing of contemporary Chinese ink art. The relationship between literature and visual art has been at times harmonious, at times fraught with tension. In line with today’s era of globalisation, contemporary Chinese art reflects the artists’ willingness to draw on a dazzling variety of literary influences throughout their creations.
“Art and literature are not opposing forces, but divided souls screaming for each other in the night. Screaming Books is a tightly-curated scholarly exhibition which gathers leading artists for whom our shared legacy of literature is an inspiration,” said Henrietta Tsui-Leung, Founder and Owner of Galerie Ora-Ora. “Celebrating the opening of our new gallery space at H Queen’s, Screaming Books marks a significant milestone in our gallery’s history and reflects our long-standing vision in promoting contemporary ink to a wider audience from Hong Kong and beyond.”
