Occupying one-third of downtown North Adams, a small, former industrial town in western Massachhusetts USA, the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art transformed an abandoned 16-acre industrial site into the largest centre for contemporary visual and performance art in America. With annual attendance of 120,000 (surprisingly high for its rural New England location, in a town with a total population of 15,000), MASS MoCA ranks among the most active and visited modern/contemporary institutions in the United States, mounting numerous exhibitions, performances and education programs, and hosting many artists in residence.

As a shining example of the way in which the arts can act as a catalyst for community revitalization, through the creation of new markets, new jobs and the long-term creative enrichment of a region and its community, MASS MoCA serves as a good case study when considering the ambitious US2.4 billion Hong Kong Government West Kowloon Cultural District project to build a major arts and cultural district on one of the last remaining pieces of land on Hong Kong's famous and valuable harbour.

Asia Art Archive and Asia Society presented this talk Contemporary Art and the New Creative Economy by Joseph Thompson, MASS MoCA's Founding Director, who has been involved with MASS MoCA since its conception in 1987. Thompson shared with the audience the MASS MoCA story and considered how it can be used as a model for other similar regeneration projects around the world. 

The talk was held at the HK Art School Learning Centre on 11th March 2008.

Conducted in English.

Video by AAA.