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Art Promotion Office and
Hong Kong Fringe Club
Journeys of
a Hong Kong Poet, Leung Ping Kwan (1949–2013)——
An Exhibition

Date

10/17

2–7pm

10/18–11/2

10am–7pm

Location Huashan 1914 Creative Park
Ticket Free Admission

In my mind, [Leung Ping Kwan] is a global writer,
bringing Hong Kong to the attention of international readers.

——Leo Lee, In the Eyes of Others, Interview, Hong Kong

Leung Ping Kwan, the poet and intellectual who celebrated and defined Hong Kong.

——Didi Kirsten Tatlow, The New York Times

Hong Kong: Sights, Sounds, Tastes and Sensibilities

Pen-named as Yasi, Leung Ping Kwan contributed immensely in shaping Hong Kong culture. He was among the city’s most influential contemporary cultural figures, an avant-garde artist who traversed comfortably across different media as well as geographic and cultural borders. Throughout his life, Yasi was very attached to his hometown, Hong Kong, while ceaselessly travelling and exploring, making minute observations on people, objects, tastes and experiences. For many years, he used poetry as a medium to engage in creative dialogues with artists in different art forms, including photographers, visual artists, designers, musicians and dancers. Indeed, Yasi was quite unique among his contemporaries in terms of the sheer range of artistic forms and styles he worked with, a testament to his openness to ideas and generosity of spirit.

The many events of Journeys of a Hong Kong Poet, Leung Ping Kwan (1949–2013), recording the creative journey of such an important Hong Kong poet, writer, academic and intellectual, celebrate Yasi’s life and continue the voices in Hong Kong literature and culture.

The exhibition displays over a hundred poems and artistic works across different media platforms by Yasi and his artist-collaborators under eight themes: Images of Hong Kong, Journeys, Residence on Earth, Lotus Leaves, Foodscape, Art Poems, Greetings and Odes. Also featured are works of emerging Taiwanese artists including Zepulj Kaluvung, Li Yen-zhi, Jam Wu, Chang Shih-fei and Tsai Wan-shuen, who have all been inspired by Yasi and responded to his art with their own art forms.

Leung’s life and work illustrated the immense possibilities of cross-disciplinary art forms and thinking beyond the traditional boundaries of literature. His creative career, which spanned over half a century, was a journey exploring the power of words, as well as a reflection of wider trends in Hong Kong culture and literature.



Leung Ping Kwan (1949–2013)

Leung Ping Kwan was one of Hong Kong’s best-known cultural figures. He wrote under the pen name Yasi with prolific literary output ranging from poetry, novel, essay and academic research to photography. Yasi started his writing career in the early 1960s, and since then published many collections of poetry, fiction, essay, literary criticism and cultural commentary. His works have been translated into many languages, including English, French, German, Portuguese, Swedish, Japanese and Korean. For years, he used poetry to engage in dialogues with artists working in different art disciplines, and tried his hand at different art forms, such as film and photography. In 1978, he went to the University of California, San Diego to study the relationship between contemporary Chinese poetry and Western modernism where he received a PhD in Comparative Literature. Upon his return to Hong Kong, Leung taught at the University of Hong Kong and Lingnan University. He devoted his life to writing, academic research and teaching.

Co-organisers

Thinking of a Poet: Recital

Yasi once said that poetry reading can help us better appreciate the little details in our lives. To tie in with the opening of the exhibition, we have invited writers and academics from Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as some of Yasi’s good friends, to gather together for a celebration of some of his best poetry.

Moderator Mary Wong
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese, Lingnan University, Hong Kong; Director of Centre for Humanities Research)
Guests Sonia Au
(Lecturer, Department of Chinese Culture, Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Associate Researcher, The French Centre for Research on Contemporary China, Hong Kong)

Chen Kuo-wei
(Associate Professor, Institute of Taiwan Literature and Transnational Cultural Studies, National Chung-Hsing University, Taiwan)
Leung Man-tao
(Cultural Critic, Writer)

Li Re-teng
(Professor, Department of Chinese Literary, National Central University, Taiwan)

Liu Ka-shiang
(Writer, Traveler)

Shiu Wen-wei
(Professor, Department of Sinophone Literatures of National Dong Hwa University, Taiwan)

Yuen Siu-cheong
(Hong Kong Writer)

Date 10/18 (Sat) 4–6pm
Location 2B, Huashan1914 Creative Park

Tea-Coffee: A Literary Talk on Leung Ping Kwan and the Cultural Identity of Hong Kong

Critics and scholars from Hong Kong and Taiwan will be exploring the theme of Hong Kong cultural identity in Leung Ping Kwan’s writing.

Moderator Mary Wong
Guests Sonia Au
Chen Chien-chung (Associate Professor, Institute of Taiwan Literature, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan)
Leung Man-tao
Li Re-teng
Shiu Wen-wei
Date 10/19 (Sun) 2–4pm
Location 3/F, Kishu An Forest of Literature
(No. 107, Tong'an Street, Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Guting Station, Exit 2)

We Travel with Lots of Stuff: A Literary Talk on Leung Ping Kwan’s Experimental and Cross-Disciplinary Art

Leung Ping Kwan was filled with curiosity for life and a passion for travelling – travelling not only in a geographical sense, but in an artistic sense as well. He worked across different media platforms with other artists, including text, film, photography and fashion. Every journey he travelled is a sight to behold and to savour. The talk will begin with a screening of excerpts from a documentary about Yasi.

Moderator Mary Wong
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese, Lingnan University, Hong Kong; Director of Centre for Humanities Research)
Speakers Chan Chi-tak
(Associate Professor, Department of Literature and Cultural Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education)

Siu Yan-ho
(Lecturer, Department of Chinese, Lingnan University, Hong Kong)

Ben Wong King-fai
(Writer, Playwright, Film Director)

Yung Man-han
(Associate Professor, Department of Chinese Literature, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan)

Date 10/26 (Sun) 3–5pm
Location The Forum, 3/F, Eslite Xinyi Store

Public Docent Tours

Meeting Place Exhibition reception
Date Saturdays & Sundays (except Oct 18) 3–3:45pm
Duration 45 minutes per session
Language Mandarin
Quota Maximum of 20 participants
Application No registration needed, first-come, first served

Participating Artists

anothermountainman, Wong Wo-bik, Wucius Wong, Zepulj Kaluvung, Erfeng, Xiya, Oscar Ho, Dexter Lee, Li Yen-zhi, Lee Ka-sing, Li Kam-fai, Jam Wu, Chow Chun-fai , David Clarke , Alfred Ko, Gérard Henry, Chang Shih-fei, Priscilla Leung, Leung Kui-ting, Anwen Leung, Leung Mee-ping, Leong Ka-tai, Mui Cheuk-yin, Millie Chen, Raymond Chan , Amy Wong, Wong Kan-tai, Holly Lee, Chihoi, Freeman Lau, Gukzik Lau, Sonia Au, Choi Yan-chi, Tomy Choi, Tsai Wan-shuen, Donna Lok, Neda, Dault, Larry Eisenstein, Paul Magendie, Milena Roglic, , Leslie Thompson, Michael Wolf, Z'otz* Collective.

Access

Huashan 1914 Creative Park
No. 1, Section 1, Bade Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei

www.huashan1914.com

Programme Enquiries

Phone

(886) 2 2720 0858 / (852) 2512 3005 / (852) 2521 7251

Website www.lcsd.gov.hk/apo / www.yasi.hk