With the theme “Integration and Dialogue”, the Biennale toured five Chinese cities between 2024 and 2025: Hangzhou, Nanjing, Beijing, Guangzhou, and now Shenzhen. The first four exhibitions drew more than 150,000 visitors and received wide acclaim from both residents and tourists. The final stage takes place in Shenzhen, recognized by UNESCO as a “City of Design,” highlighting the cultural and artistic vitality rooted in Hong Kong and Macau.
At the opening, representatives of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Macau and several local artists joined an exchange session with professionals from mainland China. Activities included visits to the Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning and the Pingshan Art Museum, encouraging greater interaction between artists and the public.
“It was a rewarding and fruitful experience,” said the Macau creators, stressing the importance of establishing direct connections with peers from different regions.
Macau’s participation focuses on the sub-theme “It Is Not Macau, But It Is Called Macau,” featuring 30 works by ten local artists: Cai Guojie, Ieong Wan Si, Im Fong, Lam Im Peng, Lo Hio Ieng, Lou Kam Ieng, Ng Sang Kei, Ricardo Filipe dos Santos Meireles, Sit Ka Kit, and Xie Yun.
The works, ranging from oil and acrylic on canvas to photography, mixed media, video, digital moving images, installations, and immersive experiences, explore the artists’ emotional ties to “Macau” – distant yet intimate, unfamiliar yet indispensable.
Since its creation in 2008, the Hong Kong and Macau Visual Arts Biennale has established itself as a major cultural exchange platform, connecting the artistic communities of Macau and Hong Kong with their peers in mainland China. In addition to visual arts, this edition also features intangible cultural heritage, social design, technological innovation, and new creative languages.
The event is jointly organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People’s Republic of China, the Governments of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Macau Special Administrative Region.
