The Peninsula group is dedicated to showcasing the rich cultural elements of its destination cities for generations. They have organized artist residencies, curated exhibits and talks that represent the local culture, and provided opportunities for studio visits and workshops with talented creators who capture the unique essence and vitality of their home cities.

The “Art in Resonance” program is making a comeback during Hong Kong Art Week. Held at The Peninsula’s flagship property, the revival features new artworks by contemporary artists like Kingsley Ng, Lachlan Turczan, Elise Morin and Saya Woolfalk. These pieces will blend with masterpieces from The Peninsula’s collection, creating an exciting exhibition set to be a highlight of the art scene.  

“We are thrilled to bring back ‘Art in Resonance,’ which has allowed our guests to engage with some of the world’s most innovative artistic minds. It is particularly exciting to relaunch the program in Hong Kong, a city that has experienced such a resurgence in vitality and creative energy,” said Gareth Roberts, deputy chief operating officer of The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Limited, The Peninsula’s parent company.

In 2019, The Peninsula introduced “Art in Resonance” in collaboration with its global cultural advisors Isolde Brielmaier and Bettina Prentice. The commission-based art program won wide acclaim for offering guests deeply immersive experiences in its hotels’ respective destination cities. It is designed to support the cultural ecosystem by providing emerging artists with funding, curatorial support and logistical capabilities that allow them to produce significant new public artworks.

Hong Kong-born Kingsley Ng’s monumental sculpture “Esmeralda” will hover over the hotel’s iconic façade beginning in late March. Ng describes the installation as “undulating between the physics of gravity and the buoyancy of air.” According to the celebrated artist, the piece — named for one of Italo Calvino’s fictional locations from his 1972 novel Invisible Cities — is meant to be in dialogue with Hong Kong itself.

“Working with The Peninsula has been an extraordinary experience for me.  I feel privileged by the chance to partner with such a venerable brand and to showcase my work to viewers in my cherished home city,” said Ng.

Los Angeles-born Lachlan Turczan’s newly commissioned “Harmonic Resonance,” a kinetic sculpture that provides a mesmerizing exploration of visible sound, will be on display in spring. The work features a parabolic mirror measuring over 1.6 meter in diameter and will shape a shallow pool of water with a series of choreographed infrasonic tones that invite audience engagement.  The low-frequency tones cause oscillating patterns to form on the surface of the pool — some of which appear to move in stop-motion.

Paris-born Elise Morin’s glittering 2019 commissioned sculptural work SOLI has been significantly expanded by the artist, especially for the Hong Kong exhibition. According to the security grade of their content, the work is newly augmented with an additional 4,000 crushed CDs (pulverized). Morin’s piece is a quiet commentary on the material burden of objects which resembles a whale breaching the ocean’s surface.

Gifu-born Saya Woolfalk’s Visionary Reality Portal, a digital portal for meditation and the contemplation of other worlds, is another inspiring work included in the exhibit. The colorful, kaleidoscopic and multisensory video installation will be housed in a purpose-built room off street-level. The piece, originally debuted at The Peninsula Paris in 2019, has also been further developed by the renowned Japanese-American artist to connect with viewers in Hong Kong.

“Giving artists like Elise Morin and Saya Woolfalk the freedom to further develop their pieces is one of the tenets of the ‘Art in Resonance’ program. Nothing is static. The Peninsula offers all of the program’s artists the opportunity to let their ideas evolve,” said Bettina Prentice, co-curator of the Hong Kong exhibition.

The dynamic and thought-provoking exhibits will remain open to the public and on display at The Peninsula Hong Kong through May; after which they will travel regularly to other Peninsula properties and be joined by additional, newly commissioned installations from local artists.