HONG KONG , The swanky new M+ Museum in Hong Kong — Asia’s largest gallery housing a $1 billion collection — will open Friday amid controversy about politics and censorship.
M+ has 183,000 square feet (17,000 sq. m) of exhibition space, 33 galleries, and more than 6,400 works. Its collection includes modern and contemporary art as well as architecture and moving pictures. M+ was designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron and aims to place Asia on the international art map.
The museum was criticized for its censorship after it refused to display Ai Weiwei’s piece as a dissident Chinese artist. Pro-Beijing politicians claimed that the piece was spreading hatred against China and could be in violation of the city’s broad national security law. M+ replaced the image of the work on its website with its logo.
Ai’s work, “Study of Perspective: Tian’anmen (1997),” depicts Ai raising his middle finger at Beijing’s Tiananmen square, where hundreds of pro-democracy protesters were killed in a brutal crackdown by People’s Liberation Army.
While some of his works will be displayed, they won’t be the images from Ai’s “Study of Perspective” series, which features middle fingers directed at the White House and the Swiss parliament, as well as the Mona Lisa. However, these images are still available on the museum’s site.
After massive protests in Hong Kong in 2019 against China’s rule, Beijing implemented the national security law. This was in response to China’s challenge to Beijing’s control over the semi-autonomous Chinese city. China promised Western-style freedoms following its 1997 handover from Britain.
This law prohibits subversion, secession, terrorism, and foreign collusion and has been used to detain over 120 people and silence any opposition voices in the city. The annual vigil to remember the Tiananmen massacre and the June 4 museum are two of them.
M+ has been criticized by Ai for censoring his work.
Ai stated that “Under the current National Security Law I believe Hong Kong is facing a very drastic political change.” He spoke to The Associated Press in Cambridge, England. “So freedom of speech (can’t) be done in a normal manner, but instead under severe censorship.
“So, I don’t believe the museum… in this kind of condition can still be the ambition to become one the most advanced cultural facilities in the world.”
M+ insists that it only acts in accordance to the law.
“This is the first modern museum in Hong Kong. Therefore, I want the message to be clear so people don’t believe that we are above law.” Henry Tang, Chairman of West Kowloon Cultural District Authority Board said during the museum’s official opening ceremony, Thursday.
“This is the first principle I always emphasize, especially in the past when there were some controversies about whether certain exhibits might be violative of the law.”
However, some believe the removal of artwork may be justifiable.
It is self-censorship for M+, but it could also be survival. John Batten, President of the International Art Critics Hong Kong, stated that they need to find a balance between what is most important and what is possible.
“And because this particular photo has been such an lightning rod of criticism… maybe we should just let it aside for awhile.”
Batten stated that M+’s opening would benefit Hong Kong’s arts scene.
M+ is the beginning of a 50-year-old institution. It should therefore be forward-looking,” he stated. He also said that M+’s excitement could be comparable to the Metropolitan Museum in New York or the Museum of Modern Art.
M+ also has works by local artists like South Ho. Ho’s photographs “Not Every Daily VI” (not every daily V) captured the Occupy Central protests of 2014 and are now part of the museum collection.
Ho said, “As an artist of contemporary art, it’s good that the museum offers a new channel for me to learn about the arts in Hong Kong and Asia.”
He said, “This is a form investment in culture that allows people to know that aside from Hong Kong’s financial achievements… it’s also a good idea that there are some cultural developments.”
