HKILF 2025 – One Last Talk – Hong Kong As A Global Art Centre with Enid Tsui – 24/3/25

Posted: March 24th, 2025 | No Comments »

Enid Tsui has been a journalist in arts since the late 2000s. Currently based in Hong Kong, she is the Arts Editor of the South China Morning Post, where she writes and commissions stories about the art market, events and cultural policies. She has an MA in art history. Her book Art in Hong Kong: Portrait of a City in Flux was published in January 2025 by Lund Humphries. As part of the “Hot Topics in the Art World” series, it provides historical context for Hong Kong’s contemporary art scene and a comprehensive look at the city’s evolving art scene and offers a nuanced perspective on Hong Kong’s future as a global art centre.

The talk will begin at 11am with Enid’s examination of how recent political changes, the COVID-19 pandemic, and a wave of talent loss have impacted Hong Kong’s artistic identity. The talk will be followed by a book-buying and signing opportunity.

Guests are encouraged to arrive on the 6th floor between 10:30am and 11am for the opportunity to preview Christie’s Art Month Opening Preview Sale as an exclusive perk of purchasing a ticket.

Date: 24 March (Monday) / Time: 10:30am-12noon / Venue: Christie’s Address: 6/F, The Henderson, 2 Murray Road, Central

Get tickets here

Art in Hong Kong is a fascinating analysis of the history, current status and possible future of Hong Kong as an international art hub, written by a local journalist who has reported on the city’s cultural landscape for many years. Enid Tsui presents a balanced and insightful picture of recent changes in the city which was once the poster-child of artistic freedom in Asia as well as the undisputed leader of the region’s booming contemporary-art market. Some of Hong Kong’s traditional advantages now look precarious following new laws imposed by China curbing freedom of expression and the city’s long period of isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic. Yet despite the exodus of talent from Hong Kong and growing uncertainties over the ‘red lines’ of censorship, there are more world-class art institutions in the city than ever before and the market has proved resilient, with international auction houses and galleries continuing to expand their presence there.

This book lifts the lid on a diverse art scene in a city of fascinating contradictions: a former British colony where artists have long been inspired by the interplay between east and west, and where the new M+ museum and other venues have to tread a tightrope between celebrating a distinct and vibrant culture based on different influences and abiding by the new national security regime.  

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