Dedicated to promoting a wider understanding of Chinese arts and culture, Sun Museum is housed on the fourth floor of the SML Tower along the Kwun Tong harbourfront. Established as a non-profit institution by the Simon Suen Foundation, it’s latest initiative is a joint exhibition. One half is titled Scenic Romance, showcasing the works of renowned local female painter Liu Cheng Mui, while the other, Slowness, spotlights photographs taken by famed jewellery designer Dickson Yewn.
Scenic Romance by Liu Cheung Mui comprises a collection of over 40 paintings and sketches, with oil paintings serving as the main artistic medium. After a decade-long break from painting, Mui returned with a burst of creativity in 2008, resulting in a great number of artworks, several of which showcased at the exhibition. Through her distinctive use of colours and brushstrokes, familiar forms of life such as the human body and animals are transformed into figurative illustrations of expressive emotion, a move that both enlivens her subject matter and elicits the viewer’s empathetic interpretation of the artist’s view on life.
Concurrently, across the opposite side of the gallery, a spread of 60 black-and-white photographs by Dickson Yewn are displayed, with a single Chinese character adorning the below of each printed frame. Embodying a breadth of subject matters, each image is meant to leave the symbolism of each subject up to the viewer’s own interpretation. Although the photographs resemble the aesthetics of ink paintings, all 60 images were surprisingly captured by an Iphone 4 and an Iphone 5 over the span of a decade. Being a fan of platinum print, Yewn opted to use a monochromatic filter, focusing on the lines and compositions of each subject without the distraction of decorative elements. The series features numerous scenic spots, historical sites, town villages, gardens and buildings across China.
This exciting new exhibition is on show until 11 February 2021. For more information visit sunmuseum.org.hk.