‘Isolation’ connotes loneliness. Though such notion has become our worst nightmare after two years of pandemic life, we dream of island, the isolated mass from the city by water, as paradise. Aldous Huxley, author of the renowned dystopian novel Brave New World, also penned Island during the end of his life, and presented a utopia, based on the isolated nature of the island. However, urban development is challenging the isolatedness of islands as reclamation and infrastructure building are closing the distances between islands and the city. Perhaps the Cantonese term for ‘isolation’, which also means ‘right nextdoor’, is telling the fate of these islands in our hometown. What if islands are no longer islanded? And, how well do we really know these islands that are supposedly very close by?

Curated by Chloe Chow, this exhibition features lens-based works of four Hong Kong artists, explores island’s isolatedness and its tension. Simon Wan’s and Chan Long Hei’s obscure yet tangible overlapping images present the physical and psychological states of isolation; prompting the audience to rethink their transient encounters with islands. Meanwhile, Lo Yin Shan’s and Wong Wei-Him’s documentary images bridged the gaps of landscapes and island sightings, fostering links between places and lives. In collaboration with ‘hkhiker’, this exhibition will also present their collection of publications centering on animals and plants in Hong Kong, allowing us to comprehend ‘island’ from non-human-oriented perspectives.

While the exhibition focuses on the geographical features of islands, the programmes curated by Leung Po Shan examine the living experiences and local knowledge through an interdisciplinary approach. Having lived on Lamma Island for 20 years, Leung curated the screenings, workshops and fieldwork events from an islander perspective, offering participants a different vantage point to look at Hong Kong.

Gallery address: 8/F, Chun Wo Commercial Centre, Wing So Street, Central