Not only physical boundaries still set apart Hong Kong and China even after the reunification, but there are also invisible segregation like scent between the two places. This art project by Morgan Wong works with this situation. Lowu Bridge as one of the most prominent connection, if not a division, between Hong Kong and Shenzhen is where one can immediately sense the distinction in scent beyond the border controls. For the new commission, Wong work closely with senior perfumer of International Flavors & Fragrances, a leading company in the design of synthetic scents, to create a whiff that prompt the memory of the arrival upon the other side of the Lowu Bridge. The amalgam of smells are dissected from that impression of sensation and resulted as a violent punch in atmosphere. The timelessness of the olfactory memory acted more than just an immaterial evidence to prove the existence of the borderline in this very moment but also a hint of its possible extinction.
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“Imagine There’s No Country, Above Us Only Our Citiesâ€
Para Site, 1 Aug – 6 Sep, 2015
Curated by Jims Lam Chi Hang
Artists: Oscar Chan Yik Long, Cheng Ting Ting, Luke Ching, Mark Chung, Chris Huen Sin Kan, Lam Hoi Sin, Lau Wai, Ng Ka Chun, Eason Tsang Ka Wai, Tang Kwok Hin, Morgan Wong and Elvis Yip Kin Bon.
Morgan Wong, That’s How I Used to Know I Have In Fact Crossed This River, 2015
For this new commission, Wong worked closely with a senior perfumer from International Flavors & Fragrances, a leading company in the design of synthetic scents, to create a scent of the memory of arriving onto the other side of the Lowu Bridge (including the “scent of human oil, sweat, metal, grass, fuel etc.â€).
Apart from scent, the work also includes a sculpture in the form of a pavilion referencing a historical image. The work is currently on show until 6th Sept 2015 at Para/Site Art Space, an internationally acclaimed non-profit art space in Hong Kong. You can read and see more here. It is also covered here.
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