frog king: hong kong pavilion at venice art biennale 2011

‘9 million works’ by frog king at the venice art biennale 2011 image © designboom

representing the hong kong pavilion at the venice art biennale 2011, multimedia artist kwok mang-ho, better known as frog king, shares five projects in an exhibition titled, ‘frogtopia – hongkornucopia.’ the first artist in china to do live performances, frog king sets up an expansive stage with work across the mediums of sculpture, painting, and installation. curated by benny chia, tsang tak-ping, and wong shun-kit, the exhibition draws from the concept of an inexhaustible cornucopia to render an immersive and engaging world.

‘9 million works’ image © designboom

in ‘9 million works,’ kwok shows multi-media works from his archive on the walls and columns. with the iconic frog recurrent throughout, the body of work integrates calligraphy, collage, painting, photography, sculpture and video.

‘frog’s nest’ by frog king image © designboom

‘frog’s nest’ is a space the artist has personalized with ephemera from his life and work. having previously done set design for the cantonese opera, the artist meticulously recreates his studio inside the pavilion for this installation.

image © designboom

detail of frog king’s signature sunglasses image © designboom

for ‘froggy sunglasses in the mobile museum,’ kwok invites the audience to participate by trying on his signature sunglasses. briefly taking on the role as artist, each who accepts creates a ‘one second performance’ or a ‘one second body installation,’ undergoing an instant character transformation to become part of the artwork. frog king has worked on this project for more than 20 years, making daily trips into the city to engage a continuously growing number of collaborators.

designboom’s birgit lohmann creates a ‘one second performance’ by wearing the sunglasses image © designboom

artist frog king kwon preparing for a performance in ‘frog-fun-lum piazza’image © designboom

‘frog-fun-lum piazza’ is the stage for kwok as he performs, sharing his joy of artistic creation. the last work, ‘yum-dimension,’ is a jungle-like installation which directs the audience to experience the artist’s playful perception of space.

press conference with curators benny chia, tsang tak-ping, and wong shun-kit image © designboom— this exhibition has been commissioned by wong ying-wai, yan hau-yee, and lee kam-yin. the hong kong pavilion is located opposite the main entrance of arsenale.

the 54th international art exhibition in venice, italy, runs until november 27, 2011.

venice art biennale 2011 (37)