What a phenomenon the booming of performance art festivals in different regions of Asia has been in the last few years and new wave of artists are turning to this artform. Performance art is often said to be such an ephemeral and intangible form that is difficult to be kept in a static exhibition. Meanwhile, more and more international festivals are being organised so as to facilitate dialogue between artists of different styles and cultures. Does the fast-growing scene imply a kind of new practice of contemporary art? Is it a kind of strategy for resisting the conventions or for building up alternative platforms or arenas for development? How do artists position themselves within these kinds of international dialogues and how do these festivals influence the practice of performance art? Is the festival phenomenon a flash in the pan, a catalyst for the new wave or even a symptom of menopause? How does this phenomenon relate to the social and cultural conditions in different regions in Asia? Ray Langenbach from USA/Malaysia, Daravuth Ly from Cambodia, Lee Weng Choy from Singapore and Ko Siu Lan from Hong Kong, who frequently participate in international performance art festivals, will all join the panel discussion reviewing their practices in the context of contemporary art from global, local and personal perspectives.

About the speakers
Ray Langenbach is an Boston-born artist, writer, and curator generally working in performative propaganda. He currently lives in Kuala Lumpur where he serves as Head of Media, School of Performance + Media, Sunway University College.

Daravuth Ly currently lives and works in Cambodia. He lectures in art history at the Faculty of Archaeology of the Royal University of Fine Arts. He is also the co-founder of Reyum Institute of Arts and Culture in Phnom Penh .

Lee Weng Choy is an art critic and artistic co-director of The Substation arts centre in Singapore. He has lectured on art and cultural studies, convened several international conferences, and written widely on contemporary art and Singapore. Weng Choy is on the academic advisory board of the Asia Art Archive.

Ko Siu Lan is an artist and cultural development worker. She works on community development and cultural action projects. She has presented her works in various performance art events both locally and overseas. She is one of the curators of the Hong Kong Performance Art On the Move project.

Moderator: wen yau, Research for Hong Kong, Asia Art Archive

The panel discussion will be held on occasion of the performance art event "Hong Kong Performance Art On the Move -- New Wave" which will take place between 25th and 30th October in Cattle Depot Artist Village in Hong Kong and Zhong Shan University in Guangzhou. For further details, please visit: http://hongkongperformanceart.org 

Relevant content

Project File: Hong Kong Performance Art Research Project
Project File: Hong Kong Performance Art Research Project
File

Project File: Hong Kong Performance Art Research Project

計劃檔案: 香港行為藝術研究計劃
2006