The early 1960s was a time of cultural awakening in Hong Kong. The city’s population was expanding and this was the time of transformation from a colonial city to a sophisticated metropolis. Luxury hotels multiplied. High rise buildings arrived. Wealth boomed. And part of this cultural evolution was the arrival of the Hong Kong Museum of Art in 1962.
Originally oriented to bring international art to the local residents, the HKMoA matured into a center of Asian arts and art history. The building moved from a shared space in City Hall to a dedicated museum on Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront in Kowloon. The curation today involves modern and ancient artworks, calligraphy, temporary exhibitions, and interactive art areas.
Museum entrance is free, and there are areas that will appeal to children. However, if you stand in line and fill out a form for a museum card, which costs $50 Hong Kong dollars in cash, you get access to the special exhibit (not included in the free museum admission) and access to seven museums in Hong Kong.
The current special exhibition is “Cézanne and Renoir Looking at the World” which includes pieces from Musée de l’Orangerie and the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. It was curated in an interesting way, with large digital screens fading from painting to painting to welcome you into the hall. The Cézannes and Renoirs shared colors and strokes, highlighting the light effects of the Impressionist masters. As the artists strived to capture the fleeting moments of everyday life, so too did the digital entryway offer a fleeting glimpse of their friendship, rhythm, and dialogue. I really enjoyed the placement of the paintings and the shared information plaques.
Our first encounter is with their still lifes. The curator chose Apples and Pears, 1895, by Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Apples and Biscuits, 1880, by Paul Cézanne as the initial study of their works. These masterpieces enunciate the initiative each painter took to represent friendship, mentorship, and fullness. Most of the other paintings were also shown in pairs–one Cézanne and one Renoir. We can more closely examine their shared styles yet distinctive techniques in florals, portraits, landscapes, and daily life scenes.
The last room of the exhibition was “Hong Kong Artist Dialogue Series. Here, local artists shared a display of artwork that interpreted and paid homage to Cézanne and Renoir. It was a beautiful way to incorporate local artists with renowned masters, Asia to Europe, and the present to the past.
Further on in the six-story museum there were exhibits of Chinese calligraphy that included conservation techniques, and Chinese snuff bottles that were exquisite gifts of the day. An interactive QR code to take a Career Aptitude Test of Ancient Literati led you to an exhibit of ancient imperial court workforces from the Five Dynasties.
Most interestingly, the technology exhibit was fascinating. It was “Perceptual and Intellectual—Explorations into Everything and Oneself.” These works contained interactive, AI generation, and immersive multimedia. Kids loved jumping into the camera’s view and watching the artwork change. Adults were busy watching, waving, and photographing the experience.
Overall, the museum can take you several hours or it is easy to select just certain exhibits to view. The gift shop was small and there was no cafe. There are elevators, escalators, and plenty of places to sit in front of big windows looking out over the beautiful cityscape and waterfront of Hong Kong.
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Bethany Miller is a writer, art advisor, and global traveler. She works on projects relating to storytelling and demystifying the art world. She writes a newsletter called Art Advisor and runs an arts education platform called Boundaryless Art. Bethany has a PhD with focus on business psychology and a Masters of Art and Culture Management. Born in the United States, she currently travels internationally full time with her husband.