In this talk, Asia Art Archive Researcher Anthony Yung will introduce the personal archive of Hong Kong–based artist, organiser, and curator, Ellen Pau. Comprising over 800 records, this archive provides insight into the development of video and media art in Hong Kong. It features rare materials about key organisations such as Zuni Icosahedron, Videotage, and the Microwave International New Media Arts Festival; and enriches narratives on contemporary feminist and experimental art circles.
Yung will provide an overview of the Ellen Pau Archive, outlining its context, organisational structure, research topics, highlights, and undocumented stories. A curated display of original materials from the Ellen Pau Archive will be on display at AAA's Library during the event.
Ellen Pau studied in Radiography at the Hong Kong Polytechnic in 1982. But being a professional radiologist could not fulfill her creative obsessions with video art and media art. A self-taught video artist, her first debut ‘Glove’, a super-8mm video artwork, was made and screened internationally in 1984. Pau’s early works first appeared in local screening clubs and then resurfaced on the international arena starting in 1987. From there, Pau dedicated her life in video art to the development of media art in Hong Kong.
Asia Art Archive is an independent non-profit organisation co-founded by Claire Hsu and Johnson Chang in 2000 in response to the urgent need to document and make accessible the multiple recent histories of art in the region. AAA is a catalyst for new ideas that enrich our understanding of the world through the collection, creation, and sharing of knowledge around recent art in Asia.
