Not so long ago artists from around Asia flocked to the West to hone their crafts, but today the drowning din of Asia’s urban centers are the beating heart of the art world. To the right connoisseur the calligraphic graffiti of Hong Kong’s Xeme and eerie photography of South Korea’s Jung Lee await.
Few nations can boast a more dynamic modern art scene than Japan, a collage of traditional and contemporary influences that collide and conflate to create works that wow the world. In a two-week tour in Japan, visitors will find landscaped royal gardens and galleries filled with the latest in almost every visual medium. Hong Kong; Hanart TZ, 10 Chancery Lane, and Yallay Space galleries are at the forefront of a rebellious, creative movement filled with youth and vigor, featuring shows by Agi Chen Yi-Chieh, Chen Wei and Zhang Zhenyu.
Both ancient and modern, Asia’s relationship with art is one of the oldest continuous histories in the world. Today’s virtuosos of the East – such as Hokusai, Yue Minjun, and Xu Bing – use the history for their forbearers. Art is just as much alive in the galleries of Japan as it is in the ancient architecture of India and in the celadon of China.