“Digital photography has provided every camera user with a lot more freedom for creative experimentation,” says Carsten Schael, President of the Institute of Professional Photographers and an award-winning photographer with a background in commercial visual art.
In this 2nd four-hour workshop, Carsten will teach and encourage you to take a more creative approach in digital photography. He will cover the theory of creative techniques followed with the practical task of photo-shooting, review and edit before ending with individual critique sessions. Understanding that people in Hong Kong are very busy, this workshop aims to instantly broaden your creative realm.
Please bring along your digital camera (big or small) to produce immediate results in the guided shooting session.
As this workshop requires some basic knowledge of your camera functions, please consider attending the earlier workshop “Exploring Digital Photography” to optimize your understanding.
Hong Kong has long been a city of wine aficionados, but historically collectors and investors stored their wines overseas to avoid wine import taxes. When wine duties were lifted in 2008, the financial benefits of storing wine halfway across the world vanished and Hong Kong immediately became a viable destination for wine cellars. Wine buffs from around the region quickly flocked to Hong Kong to find storage options for their fine collections.
13 Degrees is one such full service wine storage facility that offers sophisticated climate control and security systems to protect valuable liquid assets while allowing them to mature in a nurturing environment. Boasting spacious rooms for events and tastings, the connoisseur owners designed the cellarage not only fit for their personal collections but also as a venue where wine collectors could gather to enjoy fine wine and gourmet food.
For this special occasion, we are pleased to announce that 13 Degrees will kindly open their private venue to our members. Based on the fresh catch of the day, their in-house Chef Ming will prepare a gourmet nine-course Chinese seafood dinner tastefully paired with fine wine.
One month quickly passes and our first members’ photography exhibition "Celebrations!" will end soon on 15 November 2011. To complete the fun that has led up to this special event, everyone is invited to a closing party to meet and chat with photographers and friends over wine and cheese while listening to some light jazzy music. This will be a casual get-together for a last glimpse of the exhibition before it is dismantled at 6:00 pm.
It will also be a wonderful chance for members to socialize and share feedbacks with the Executive Committee about the exhibition and photography book or other activities and trips. New ideas and volunteers are greatly welcome.
In the season of Thanksgiving, let’s pat each other on the back, and celebrate the good works done for "Celebrations!"
Many photography enthusiasts have embraced digital photography in recent years. But the transition from analogue to digital was not always without problems and frustrations. Learning new terminologies and mastering the use of multi-function options to capture the perfect shot can be a challenge.
Carsten Schael, one of the distinguished jurors of the "Celebrations!" exhibition, is the President of the Institute of Professional Photographers and an award-winning photographer who has worked with digital imaging for over fifteen years. From capturing the shot to processing and outputting the final product, he has used digital technology to create a large variety of images for uses ranging from international advertising campaigns to fine art works.
In this comprehensive four-hour workshop, Carsten will provide you with answers, solutions, tips as well as tricks on how to make the most of your digital equipment.
Participants are invited to bring along your preferred camera for some hands-on instruction and problem-solving. You may also bring samples of your digital images (JPG files on USB stick) to solve any specific questions
Christie’s Hong Kong will again hold its autumn 2011 sale of Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. You are invited to join the popular preview tour led by Christie’s specialists, Pola Antebi and Rosemary Scott, to view the exquisite Chinese Works of Art objects featured in this season’s auctions.
Pola Antebi joined Christie’s Hong Kong in 1990 and since 2000 has been the Head of the Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Department in Hong Kong. Her areas of expertise include Imperial ceramics, jades and works of art from the Yuan to the Qing periods. She is currently a member of the Hong Kong Management Committee. Rosemary Scott is the International Academic Director of Christie’s Asian Art Department and a former president of the London Oriental Ceramic Society.
Rosanna Li Wei Han is a well-known Hong Kong ceramicist whose robust ceramic figurines are imbued with cultural and symbolic meaning. For "Café Acrobatic", Li has created a troupe of “acrobats” who perform their daily tasks in the typical Hong Kong “cha chaan teng” – 茶餐廳 – with agility, grace and humour. Visitors to the exhibition will meet the chef and his staff, the cashier, waiters – everyone whose strength, speed and skill are admired by Li as they go about their everyday work.
“This exhibition is a big mix of my childhood fantasies and life-long obsession with traditional Chinese and local cultures,” Li says about "Café Acrobatic".
Born in Hong Kong, Rosanna Li studied ceramics at the Hong Kong Polytechnic. She pursued her undergraduate studies in Art Education at the University of Liverpool and earned a post-graduate Diploma in Art Education from the University of London. She also obtained a Master’s Degree in Educational Management from the Cheltenham & Gloucester College as well as a Master’s Degree in Cultural Studies from Lingnan University. From 1990 to 2010 she worked in the School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, while making successful endeavours in the art scene.
In this special tour, Li will talk about the inspiration for "Café Acrobatic" and the process of creating the figurines, a body of works that delights us and deepens our insight into everyday life.
Chinese theatre is one of the world’s three oldest theatres. Unlike the other two, namely, Greek theatre and Sanskrit theatre, which are rarely brought to stage nowadays, Chinese theatre has been actively performed for centuries to this day as what is generally known as Chinese opera. While understanding of the early development of this ancient art form was based heavily on textual sources, archaeological discoveries in the past few decades have offered us fascinating insights into the subject.
This talk will reveal to the audience images of actors and actresses in performance from tomb furnishings and temple decoration in the Song and Yuan dynasties. They are in the form of carvings, figurines and paintings. Through these depictions, we shall look into the characteristics of theatrical performance in China some 700 years ago, and their linkage to contemporary performance. The discussion will cover such aspects as stage architecture and design, costumes, and make-up, etc. The main focus is on the early development of the role category system, which is a unique feature of Chinese theatre. The visual data will enable us to appreciate some intriguing aspects of the role differentiation between male and female performers as well as cross gender acting, a practice that still persists in some regional genres of Chinese opera nowadays.
The Speaker
Dr Irene Tsang obtained her MA and PhD degrees from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London in the field of art and archaeology. After finishing her doctoral study, she taught subjects of Chinese opera and Chinese art in City University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She is now working on a book about the archaeology of performance in ancient China which is adapted from her PhD thesis.
Tina Yee-wan Pang, Curator of the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG), will give an informal presentation of current curatorial practices in the USA at a time of unprecedented cultural expansion worldwide, both with the building of new museums and the expansion of existing institutions. She will share her thoughts on how these exciting developments can encourage a closer reading of museum missions. She will explore the relationship of museums to their community, as well as describe how collections are currently being used, and the contexts in which art is being positioned.
Tina’s research would not have been possible without the generous support of the Lee Hysan Foundation, which funded her Asian Cultural Council Grant in 2010.
In addition to her role as Curator of UMAG, Tina is also an Honorary Assistant Professor in the Department of Fine Arts at The University of Hong Kong. She graduated from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in Chinese and Art & Archaeology, and holds an MPhil from St. Hilda’s College, Oxford in Ethnology and Museum Ethnography.
Professor Peter Lam (林業強教授) will lead us on a trip to Taipei for the exhibition, "Emperor Kangxi and the Sun King Louis XIV: Sino-Franco Encounters in Arts and Culture (康熙大帝與太陽王路易十四特展)". We shall view some of the most iconic pieces associated with these two imperial personages. Although separated by a vast distance, they shared a love of beauty and used the resources they have at their disposal to create beautiful objects for their enjoyment.
The National Palace Museum in Taipei (NPM) has one of the greatest collections of Chinese cultural artifacts in the world. Many of the treasures came from the Chinese mainland, especially from Beijing during the time of tumultuous social changes. Since its founding, the NPM has grown in collection and scope, including research, preservation, education, cultural exchange and public service.
We are very privileged to have as our guest lecturer, Professor Peter Y.K. Lam. A graduate from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Peter Lam is an art historian as well as a museum professional. His scholarly works on Chinese ceramics, calligraphy rubbings and the decorative arts are widely published. He began his museum career at the Urban Council City Hall Museum and Art Galleries in the early 1970’s working under James Watt, who founded the Art Museum at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. After a very short period at the City Hall, he joined the Chinese University of Hong Kong and has been there for the past thirty-nine years and is currently its Director/Professor. Peter Lam is a long time member of the Min Chiu Society, a prestigious collectors’ club in Hong Kong, a council member of the Chinese Society of Ancient Ceramics in Beijing, and Honorary Fellow of the Palace Museum, Beijing, and a former chairman of the Archaeological Committee of the Antiquities Advisory Board, Hong Kong SAR Government.
The trip is now full. We are grateful to members for their enthusiastic participation which gives our committee a greater incentive to plan for more exciting trips in the future. Thank you!
Fine Art Asia 2011 is Asia’s leading annual fine art and antiques fair. Over seventy prominent local and international dealers from Asia, Europe and the USA will be represented in this event from 3-7 October at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. On display will be Asian and Western art, antiques, fine jewellery, Modern and Contemporary art. Fine Art Asia 2011 (www.fineartasia.com) will be held during the peak art and auction season of October in Hong Kong.
The Society is delighted that Robin Markbreiter, Director and Executive Editor at "Arts of Asia" (www.artsofasia.com), the foremost international Asian arts and antiques magazine, has kindly agreed to lead our members through this fair. A native Cantonese speaker and a collector of Chinese, Japanese and Southeast Asian art, Robin Markbreiter will bring to our attention a selection of highlights on display and introduce members to prominent gallery owners and exhibitors. This is a unique opportunity to become informed about the most desirable and finest quality objects at the show.
Robin Markbreiter graduated from Manchester University with a BA (Hons) in Economics and Accounting Finance. He received a MBA (Hons) from London Business School, and also attended the MBA Program at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. A writer and photographer, he has worked passionately at "Arts of Asia" for over twenty years, overseeing all aspects of the business from design to production. He attends important art fairs, auctions, museum and gallery exhibitions around the world, appears on radio and TV, and gives presentations on Asian art to Hong Kong and overseas organizations. Robin Markreiter is considered one of the most influential writer and commentator on the Asian auction and art fair scene.
