HEARTS & HANDS : CRAFTS OF HONG KONG
2023
This exhibition is a celebration of the skills and creativity of Hong Kong’s artisans and a reminder of the importance of craftsmanship in preserving our city’s culture and heritage. We hope that it will inspire visitors to revive, reinterpret and perpetuate traditional crafts in their own lives, and to play a part in keeping alive Hong Kong’s rich culture of craftsmanship.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
Fanson Lam, Jacky Lam
The theme of this work is memories of school life and the uniforms of secondary school students in Hong Kong.
For most students in Hong Kong, wearing school uniforms is a cherished part of their culture. It is a tradition that dates back many years and is widely respected by the community.
After discussing the theme of their creation, contemporary artisan Jacky Lam crafted the outer frame of the table screen with different types of local wood. The exterior was decorated with different lacquering techniques. Contemporary artisan Fanson Lam created the clay sculpture as the foundation, whereas Jacky made use of the bodiless lacquer technique and improved it to craft the sculpture.
Fanson Lam presented the school uniforms in qipao style in the form of a freestanding sculpture, breaking away from the plain form of the relief, whereas adding a man and a woman wearing different school uniforms. In this way, the contrast between the plain form of relief and the three-dimensional freestanding sculpting technique is used to convey the “ancient meaning” and the “new tradition” and to anticipate the future through the three-dimensional and freestanding body.
Fanson Lam used “school uniform”, “student”, “screen”, and “turn” as the themes of his sculptures to illustrate his understanding of “memory”. The work incorporates a table screen made of Acacia confusa by contemporary artisan Jacky Lam. He also created other contemporary everyday objects with the bodiless lacquer technique, a traditional lacquerware-making technique used for statues of gods and Buddha. Jacky hopes to recollect his memories of the time, people, places and things in Hong Kong through this work.
BON VOYAGE
Master Liu Wing Sheung, Fanson Lam, Jacky Lam
The creation of “Bon Voyage” is derived from the Chinese wooden sailing boat, commonly known as the junk boat. The sails in the form of fallen leaves were crafted by Master Liu Wing Sheung, using glass and brass to create a lustrous effect. Contemporary artisan Fanson Lam and Jacky Lam used wood from the Acacia tree to shape the wax mold of the hull, responding to Master Liu’s sails through their woodworking and sculptural techniques in the hope of capturing the present moment in Hong Kong.
