Opening Reception: 5 May 2023 (Fri), 6–8:30pm
Artist Talk and Guided Tour: 6 May 2023 (Sat), 2-3:30pm
conducted in English
The artist talk will be hosted by curator Merryn Trevethan in discussion with Gisèle Tchitchiama, filmmaker Joanna Bowers and HART Haus resident and French fashion designer Yasmina Viale-Fraine.
RSVP atelier@thehart.com.hk
Exhibition period: 5–17 May 2023
Opening hours: Mon–Sat 10:30am–6:30pm, preferably by appointment atelier@thehart.com.hk.
Free of charge
“Luminaria” derives its title from the Latin luminaria, light and luminare, star.
“Luminaria” frames a quest for illumination through encounters with light, fragility and the ephemeral. For Gisèle, her multiple identities - French, African, woman, wife, mother, daughter - are woven into her interrogations. Presence and absence are at the heart of her ongoing artistic conversation which takes the audience on a journey into inner and outer landscapes.
Following the turbulent years of the pandemic, artist Gisèle Tchitchiama wanted to create an experience of hope; to share the sense of calm and light she felt with the world, to create a space to be still and to experience light.
The exhibition was inspired by the colour, poetry and delicacy of an unexpected moment on a journey from France to Dover, England last summer, Gisèle captured in a blurry landscape photo. This image became the starting point for an artistic journey that incorporates many creative and meaningful collaborations.
Reflecting on this image led Gisèle to the exhibition's title “Luminaria” and then a song appeared. From the song came an idea for a short film. This led to a collaboration with Hong Kong based filmmaker Joanna Bowers who created a sensitive and delicate short film to go along with the song, which is included in the installation. Gisèle also envisioned her song with a cello accompaniment.
For Gisèle, this collaboration could only be with Laurent Perrin, assistant Principal Cello with the Sinfonnietta. Then the magic happened! Laurent created a suspended and beautiful score for the film, completing this leg of the journey with the soulful sound of his solo cello. For Gisèle, these collaborations with Joanna and Laurent made her vision for the exhibition a reality in a most beautiful way. Both artists possess such a delicate understanding of emotional landscapes, which perfectly compliment Gisèle's own, partnering the playful, lightness of touch and melodic sensibility of her unique visual language that weaves its way through the exhibition space.
Fellow artist resident at HART Haus, Merryn Trevethan has curated the exhibition bringing these collaborations together with Gisèle’s delicate paintings, sculptures, works on paper and reused plastics to move the audience together on a journey through inner and outer landscapes that celebrates the ephemeral nature of light. The installation frames an encounter that captures the fragility and delicate balance we need as humans, offering hope and the possibility of “Luminaria.”
For Gisèle, Luminaria is an invitation for a voyage that emerges from the in-between; of the sky and the ground, the near and far, the inner and outer. It is a rêverie perhaps or a journey in music essential to her process, offering a precious companion and a moment of calm for the viewer.
About the Artist
Gisèle Tchitchiama is a French painter and collage artist, investigating the allure of freedom in her pictorial and abstract universe, and gives it form by examining the relationship between colour and brush stroke. Tchitchiama continually tries to clarify the transcendence of identity, an elegant fluidity in which a new sense of peace and gentleness is created. She concentrates on employing a powerfully evocative dreamscape, using distinctive strokes of paint that are like shadows of both force and lightness, creating a poetry between her profound use of colours, the material used and the act of creating. Tchitchiama invites us to take a moment to enter our personal cosmos of light and intimacy with oneself, inspiring those who engage with her work, to rediscover the beauty of humanity within oneself.
Tchitchiama has held many solo exhibitions and group exhibitions, exhibited extensively internationally, including solo exhibitions at Les Cléias; Petal of Hope, Les Cléias x Gisèle Tchitchiama, Hong-Kong, 2020; Le Louvre; The Circle of Life Project, Art shopping, Paris, France, 2019; Culture Club, Light up the other side, Le French May associated program, Hong Kong, 2019; and The Hong Kong Banker's Club in 2015.
She has published two titles featuring her collage and painting works, and was commissioned to create an artwork for the cover of the Hong Kong Chef recipes book, Clara’s dream. In 2022 she was co-curator of Transversal, Spring Showcase exhibition at HART Haus. She has been living and working in Hong Kong since 2005.
About the Curator
Merryn Trevethan (AU) is an Australian artist currently based in Hong Kong, relocating in February 2021 after 7 years in Singapore. Her abstracted, hyper- saturated artworks are inspired by the changing nature and structure of cities. She examines how we see, navigate and record our experiences of urban environments. Her paintings, drawings, murals and objects are often layered in site-responsive installations to reflect different modes of seeing, inviting viewers to relate to and be critical of our surroundings.
Merryn graduated with an MFA from Monash University, Melbourne (2005). Recent commissions include a site-specific mural for the Australian Theatre for Young People at their new premises on Pier 2, Sydney Harbour; a digital painting for Henderson Land, Hong Kong and cover artwork for Fran Swinn’s new LP “Old Idea/New Idea”. In Singapore, Merryn created murals for Facebook OpenArts program in 2020 and 2015. She was one of ten artists (and co-curator) of Bus.Stop.Art public art project, commissioned by National Arts Council for Singapore Art Week 2021. Key residencies include Golden Foundation Residency Program, New York (2018) and Red Gate International Artist Residency, Beijing, China (2009). She has held solo and group exhibitions in Australia, Singapore, USA and Hong Kong. Most recently in Postmodern Tales at H Queen’s, Hong Kong curated by Vera Lam. She has participated in public art festivals in Melbourne and Singapore, where in 2014 she was awarded first prize for DRIVE - Public Art Festival Open Call.
Curatorial projects include Bus.Stop.Art- a National Arts Council commissioned project for Singapore Art Week 2021, Rules of Engagement- a Public Square Programme, The Substation, Singapore (2019) and This Wild Song x Singapore celebrating International Women’s Day at the Australian High Commission, Singapore (2018). She is currently a studio resident at HART HAUS Social Studio in Hong Kong.
About the Speaker 講者簡介
Joanna Bowers (UK) is a Director, Producer and Screenwriter based in Hong Kong with a focus on telling inspiring, international stories featuring ethnically diverse casts and empowered female protagonists. Originally from the UK, Joanna earned her degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Leeds.
Joanna began directing narrative short films in 2009, working with female writers to tell original stories from unique perspectives. She then relocated to Hong Kong where she landed filming assignments throughout Asia for commercial and documentary clients.
Joanna’s feature documentary debut "The Helper" exploring the maternal sacrifices of migrant domestic workers was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign and after its Hong Kong premiere, went on to a sold out 3 month theatrical run followed and was released on SVOD and streaming platforms including iTunes, AmazonPrime and and NatGeo. The film’s impact campaign gathered thousands of gestures of appreciation for migrant workers in the region.
Joanna’s latest feature documentary "reFashioned" follows three passionate Hong Kongers spearheading radical solutions to establish a circular economy before the landfills overflow and Hong Kong drowns in waste. “reFashioned” premiered at Doc DMZ and HIFF. Other recent projects also include TV commercial campaigns for The Hong Kong Jockey Club, Cathay Pacific and HSBC.