de Sarthe Gallery is proud to unveil its new gallery space in Wong Chuk Hang. Encompassing 10,000 square feet and spread across the entire 20th floor in the Global Trade Square building, the expansion will be inaugurated by Reversal Ritual, a group exhibition of 5 emerging Chinese and Hong Kong artists Liang Ban, Mak Ying Tung, Tong Kunniao, Wang Xin, and Xin Yunpeng. The exhibition runs from 23rd March to 13th May 2017.

Reversal Ritual is a group exhibition organized by gallery directors Willem Molesworth and Vincent de Sarthe to inaugurate the new Hong Kong space. It includes work by Liang Ban, Mak Ying Tung, Tong Kunniao, Wang Xin and Xin Yunpeng. The show addresses the concept of “carnivalesque” developed by 20th century literary critic Mikhail Bakhtin as it pertains to artwork created by an emerging generation of young Chinese artists today. In reference to the comically festive events depicted by 16th century novelist François Rabelais, Bakhtin asserts that the carnival was an expression of an alternative world liberated from the social, political, cultural and religious structures of the time. His concept, often considered as a utopian antidote to repressive forms of power, serves as a celebration of the possibility for change, however transitory in nature. The exhibition aims to highlight how several young Chinese artists have begun to express themselves through similar means in reaction to the newly established order of Chinese society. The show features multiple site-specific installations as well as participatory artwork.

Press release courtesy Hong Kong.