Karin Weber Gallery is proud to return to its local roots with Click...Clatter... Clunk..., a group exhibition celebrating the history of traditional printing companies which sprung up around the Central and Sheung Wan neighbourhoods on Hong Kong Island in the 1960s and 70s. Largely replaced by digital print processes from the 1990's onwards, the old-fashioned letter press and offset printing shops were integral to their localities. Today, they provide a rich source of nostalgia and inspiration for Hong Kong rooted artists, for whom their sounds, smells and fittings are part of early childhood memories. Several of the (mostly female) artists in Click...Clatter...Clunk... are recent art school graduates, in their debut show with Karin Weber Gallery, while we also welcome the return of some long-standing gallery artists.

Works in this multi-themed show stretch across audio, painting, printmaking, fabric and even fiction writing. Carmen Ng's entire childhood revolved around a print shop as her father used to own one of the iconic outlets. In a series of new paintings, Ng engages with the technical evolution of printing technology, transforming from movable type to digital process. Sound artist Andio Lai creates two audience interactive digital instruments to mimic the retro printing process. Textile artist Kate Ouyang brings her passion for local historical objects to her series of embroidered type set sorts.

In contrast, Rainbow Chan engages directly with the print process in her beautiful etchings illustrating a fable. The close connection between printing and newspaper is the subject of Tse Ngo Sheung's work. Her tabloid style publication dedicated to this show is full of facts and fiction, private and public stories and histories. As a visitor highlight, Yo Chow's student desk installation recreates a student learning experience using an old-fashioned desk and chair, plus a selection of type sorts within the gallery space.

Click...Clatter...Clunk... is more than just a series of sounds. It is a collection of highly personal stories and memories, inspired by a rich chapter in the history of Hong Kong.

Press release courtesy Karin Weber Gallery.