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Ernest Kao

Families and hardcore art aficionados flocked to the city's biggest art fair on Sunday after two whole days of VIP-only jamborees.
Long snaking queues were seen at the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai as soon as Art Basel officially opened its doors to the public at 1pm.
Featuring 233 galleries from 37 countries and territories, including a handful from Hong Kong and other parts of Asia, the Swiss fair is said to be the biggest international art extravaganza in Asia.
Couples, tourists and parents with young children strolled though the venue yesterday trying their best to interpret the meaning of abstract sculptures and perplexing installations.
Vicky Ng was there with her young daughter. "I brought her along today to check out the exhibition because we had complimentary tickets. I also want her to know that art is not just a drawing on a piece of white paper," Ng said.
"I told her not to ask me what a piece of artwork means and to just try and figure it out on her own."
Carlos Lee, 22, a visual arts student, said he was visiting the fair for "inspiration".
"It's good to see what kind of art from Asia and Asian artists is being exhibited by galleries abroad," he said.
The Tourism Board dubbed March the "art month" after Art Basel moved its show from May to March, coinciding with the Hong Kong Arts Festival and the International Film Festival.
Michael Lett, director of New Zealand-based gallery Michael Lett, praised the organisers for making the move as it meant the event would not clash with other art fairs.
Lett said business had been relatively good compared to last year, with sales up about 25 per cent on the third day. He said he was focusing on regional collectors.
"There has been a huge swell in contemporary art in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.
To give his booth a Hong Kong twist, Lett displayed works by Simon Denny, including his Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom: Seized Property, a collection of digital print and spray paint canvases featuring items seized from the internet entrepreneur, including Hong Kong bank account statements.
"The fair is going very well," said Virginie Puertolas-Syn, the international director for Hong Kong-based Pearl Lam Galleries, which closed deals for works by mainland artists Zhu Jinshi and Su Xiaobai over the weekend at prices ranging from US$40,000 to US$120,000
"We're seeing more and more Chinese buyers and collectors this year," she added. "The market in this region is growing … It's getting more educated, more cultured. They're visiting more museums and they're travelling more overseas."


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Gallery operators report good sales, while young visitors try to figure out what the art all means
