Micromégas: Hong Kong, 微觀巨世：香港

Micromégas: Hong Kong微觀巨世：香港

19/05/2021 - 24/05/2021

Co-presented by the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macau, K11 Art Foundation and Videotage, Micromégas: Hong Kong presents a new video work by French artist Théodora Barat during her 8-week residency in Hong Kong from February to April 2021. The work will be shown for the first time at K11 MUSEA’s immersive outdoor venue Sunken Plaza in the evening from 19 to 24 May 2021.The screening is also an associated program of Le French May arts festival this year.

French artist Théodora Barat’s new video work Off Power inspired by the electricity infrastructure in Hong Kong. It explores the relationship between the city and its suburbs – a theme already developed in her previous pieces exploring that between New York and New Jersey, Paris and the Seine-Saint-Denis. For this project, Théodora has attempted to highlight how the electrical infrastructures of the New Territories were built exclusively to supply urban areas with electricity. Her recent projects and research have led her to question the ideology of modernity and how globalisation has shaped these lands.

As a tribute to Voltaire’s literary work, the Micromégas cross-cultural residency aims to facilitate artistic and cultural exchanges between France and Hong Kong, while nurturing the practices of next-generation media artists.

Off Power | Théodora Barat
Single-channel Video / 17 mins 10 sec / 2021

Off Power is about electricity. Started with architectural and urban planning analysis of Hong Kong Island, it slowly derives to an imagination of a science-fiction world. In an imagined future, the electricity coming from Lamma Island is cut. Therefore, the entire Hong Kong Island stays in the darkness.

Théodora Barat was born in 1985. She lives and works in Pantin, France.
Théodora Barat’s artistic approach appears as a field where film, sculpture and installation meld. She studied in Nantes School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University, and Le Fresnoy – Studio national des arts contemporains. She is currently working on a practice-based PhD with RADIAN program dealing with the imprint of nuclear research in the Four Corners area in the United States. She has been the winner of several grants such as Audi Talents Award (2016), FACE Foundation’s Étant donnés (2020), and Drac – Île de France’s AIC (2020).

法國駐港澳總領事館、K11 Art Foundation 與錄映太奇共同呈獻「微觀巨世：香港」，誠邀法國藝術家巴拉特 (Théodora Barat) 於2021年2月至4月期間駐港八星期，並創作媒體藝術作品。新作品將於2021年5月19日至24日晚上首度亮相，正式登陸 K11 MUSEA 的沉浸式露天廣場Sunken Plaza。是次放映為今年法國五月藝術節的聯辦節目。

法國藝術家巴拉特的最新作品《Off Power》以香港電力供應設施為創作中心，探討城市與近郊的關係。這個主題與她過去相近類型作品產生共鳴，例如她曾探討紐約與新澤西州及巴黎與塞納聖但尼省之間的關係。在是次駐場計劃中，巴拉特聚焦於專為市區供電而建的新界電力基建。她透過最近從事的項目及研究，反思現代社會的意識形態，以及全球化如何形塑土地。

「微觀巨世」跨文化駐場計劃向法國作家伏爾泰的文學作品致敬，旨在促進法國與香港之間的藝術及文化交流，同時培育下一代媒體藝術家。

Off Power | Théodora Barat
單頻道錄像 / 17分10秒 / 2021

《Off Power》是一部關於「電」的藝術作品。藝術家對香港島的建築和城市規劃做研究並受其啟發，創作這部如科幻小說的媒體作品。在藝術家的虛構世界中，南丫島停止提供電力，令整個香港島陷入一片漆黑。

Théodora Barat出生於1985年。她在法國龐坦居住和工作。
Théodora Barat的作品融合電影、雕塑和裝置。她曾就讀於Nantes School of Art、曼徹斯特都會大學和Le Fresnoy – Studio national des arts contemporains，現於RADIAN進行她的博士研究。Barat曾獲多個獎項，包括Audi Talents Award（2016）、FACE Foundation Étant donnés（2020）、Drac – Île de France’s AIC（2020）。