Advertisement

Illusions of home, and the hyper-capitalism behind technology, explored in show by Hong Kong artist who finally feels at home … in Finland

  • Sheung Yiu 3D-printed the desk in his new home in Finland, and tried to capture the smell of mouldering childhood comics from his old home, Hong Kong
  • Both have flaws, and for the artist that’s the point; neither process captured the essence of home, the theme of his Hong Kong show Everything is a Projection

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
A still from Everything is a Projection (2023), a video in which Hong Kong-born, Finland-based artist Sheung Yiu explains what it felt like to rediscover childhood comic books and how he tried and failed to preserve their essence. The title is also that of his show in Hong Kong. Photo: Enid Tsui

For his first Hong Kong solo exhibition, Finland-based Sheung Yiu has created a range of illusory experiences pertaining to the idea of home: a 3D-printed full-scale replica of his work station in the country’s capital, Helsinki, holographic images of a few personal possessions, a glass cabinet containing a smell that reminds him of his childhood in Hong Kong.

Advertisement

There is much technical wizardry involved, but this commissioned project at WMA Space in Central district is no cheerleader for “art tech”. In fact, the questions that it raises about the promise of new, virtual environments are well timed.

After all, the big news this month is the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro headset, a product that could profoundly change the way technology dictates the way we engage with the world around us.

The context for Yiu’s exhibition “Everything is a Projection” is provided by a documentary-style film of the same name. In it, Yiu explains what it felt like to rediscover his childhood stash of Japanese comic books in Hong Kong during his first visit since the end of the coronavirus pandemic.

Hong Kong-born, Finland-based artist Sheung Yiu. Photo: Dan Court
Hong Kong-born, Finland-based artist Sheung Yiu. Photo: Dan Court

They smelled of damp and decay after being left in his family’s storage unit on rural Cheung Chau island, an unpleasant fug which was as much an olfactory trigger of childhood memories as that permanent hint of drains in Hong Kong and the fumes from ageing ferries plying Victoria Harbour, he says.

Advertisement
Advertisement