A new exhibition at Sands Gallery showcases a quarter-century of work by nine local contemporary artists, taking viewers “on a journey by revisiting the glorious moments in Macao’s development” according to Sands China’s executive vice chairman, Wilfred Wong.
Co-organised by the Macau Artist Society and curated by participating local artist Lam Chi Ian, Echoes of a Golden Age opened on Monday. It features 121 works representing a huge array of styles, from Chinese ink painting and watercolours to digital illustration and photography. A unique collection of postage stamps designed by the artists has also been included in the exhibition.
Besides Lam, the artists participating are Lai Ieng, Lok Hei, Ng Wai Kin, Ung Vai Meng, Lio Man Cheong, Lei Tak Seng, Chan Hin Io, and Ao Kuan Kin. The show is being staged to mark dual celebrations of the SAR’s 25th anniversary and 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
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Lam described the exhibition’s official theme – Macro Events through Micro Visions – as representing the artists’ perspectives on “how Macao has been reinvigorated” since the administrative handover from Portugal to China in 1999. “With the aim of relating Macao’s stories through the soft power of culture and art, we decided to pay tribute to the dual celebrations with this exhibition,” Lam added.
Artist Lok Hei, who is also president of the Macau Artist Society, said that the exhibition was a display of local artists’ “love for Macao” and “a reflection of Macao’s historical heritage due to the integration of Chinese and Western cultures and the city’s rapid development since its reunification.”
Echoes of a Golden Age is free and open between 11 am and 7 pm daily until 5 January at Sands Gallery, on the 6th floor of the Grand Suites at Four Seasons. Sands will also be hosting a sketching masterclass led by the artists during this period at the former Iec Long Firecracker Factory and the Taipa Houses.
