A Bash Before Basel
Tatler hosts a private dinner for art connoisseurs at The Upper House
In celebration of Art Basel’s much anticipated return to Hong Kong, Tatler and The Upper House hosted a private dinner for art connoisseurs on May 13. Guests including Vicky Lam, Marisa Yiu and Alan Chan assembled at the hotel’s Mediterranean restaurant, Salisterra, for greetings and aperitifs in the Green Room, then crossed the hall to enjoy an intimate dinner in the Sky Lounge.
Guests previewed a special edition of the May issue, the cover of which featured a new painting 34 by Canadian artist Marcel Dzama, who made the work especially for Tatler.
Dzama, whose work was displayed at David Zwirner’s booth at the fair, incorporated elements of the city into the cover. Titled Year of the Ox, the painting features the Clock Tower in Tsim Sha Tsui. The timing was portentous: the landmark’s centenary coincided with the month that Dzama made the work. What’s more, a photo of Dzama and his father in front of the Clock Tower hangs in their family home, too, making the piece even more personal for the artist.
Guests were enthusiastic in their praise for Dzama’s attention to detail in his tribute to Hong Kong. “The cover embodies Marcel Dzama’s famous whimsical mythology in a way that encapsulates the many opposing elements of Hong Kong: modernity and tradition, urbanisation and nature, vibrancy and calmness,” said James Lie. “He added the TST Clock Tower—one of the most
iconic colonial structures in Hong Kong—in the background to highlight the city’s multicultural identity.”
Queenie Rosita Law also hailed the tower’s inclusion. “The TST Clock Tower stands tall and reminds us of the romance Hong Kong evokes through its structures, night sky and eclectic range of people,” she said, while poring over the pages of the magazine.
Thousands of art lovers attended Art Basel Hong Kong, which was one of the first art fairs to take place since the start of the pandemic. The opening of the fair happened to fall on Buddha’s birthday, too. We’ll take that as a sign of more good things to come.