55th Board Meeting of West Kowloon Cultural District Authority Held Today

The Board of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA) held its 55th meeting today, which is the first meeting of the new term of the Board.

The Chairman of the WKCDA Board, Mrs Carrie Lam, welcomed new Board members and Ms Suhanya Raffel, the newly appointed Executive Director of M+, at the meeting and thanked outgoing Board members for their invaluable contribution.

WKCDA’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr Duncan Pescod reported to the Board progress of the various core arts and cultural facilities under construction or detailed planning, and highlighted the cultural programmes undertaken. 

On the artistic front, the inaugural exhibition at the M+ Pavilion Tsang Kin-Wah: Nothing, which was closed on 6 November, had received very good feedback from an audience of over 11,000, inclusive of visitors who participated in around 80 guided tours for the public, schools and visitors with specific needs. The second exhibition at the M+ Pavilion, Shifting Objectives: Design from the M+ Collection, will be held from 30 November 2016 to 5 February 2017. As M+’s debut design show, the exhibition will outline the growing contours of the M+ design collection, which is the first of its kind in Asia and a core pillar of the M+ Collection.

Members were briefed that between 4 and 6 November the WKCDA played host to Antigone, a contemporary adaptation of Sophocles’s classic Greek tragedy directed by critically acclaimed Hong Kong director Tang Shu-Wing and performed by Beijing-based Baiguang Theatre Studio. The special outdoor production, staged on the rooftop of WKCDA’s Project Site Office, was live-streamed on the internet to audiences in Hong Kong and overseas. Further to this, the New Works Forum: Multimedia and Dance Dialogue – Su Wen-Chi & Wu Chi-Tsung held from 4 to 8 October, was attended by a number of local artists and dance practitioners to critically explore new ways of thinking about body, technology, dance and new media performance together with choreographer Su Wen-chi and new media artist Wu Chi-Tsung.

Mr Pescod also reported that the new season of Freespace Happening, featuring an array of programmes including outdoor cinema, music, literature, dance, dogs and kids activities, was very well-received with a total of over 22,200 visitors attending the first and second events in September and October. The event on 13 November will feature some of the greatest music pieces from 1950s to 1980s, as well as a performance by local pop diva Elisa Chan with jazz orchestra The 5422 Collective, filling the Nursery Park venue with nostalgic tunes.

The Board approved the launching of a competition amongst Hong Kong young architects and designers to deliver a temporary pavilion at the Nursery Park in the West Kowloon Cultural District.  Open to Hong Kong residents who are studying or have graduated within the past seven years, the competition aims to showcase emerging local talent on an international stage and create an innovative new space within the district that can be enjoyed by the public.

The Board also approved the programming framework and opening plan of Xiqu Centre as well as the procurement strategy for facility management services, the guidelines for the commercial leasing process and the establishment of a commercial letting panel.