Art Basel Hong Kong previews open today: here are 9 artists to look out for
From Kazakh warrior sculptures to speculative films by Andrew Thomas Huang and Ayoung Kim, these are the artworks defining this year’s programme
Aya Shalkar and Uuriintuya Dagvasambuu
Art from Central Asia has been making its presence felt on the global art stage. Hong Kong’s Chat held a landmark show in 2023: “Clouds, Power and Ornament – Roving Central Asia” was the first exhibition on Central Asian textile art in Greater China, introducing local audiences to the region. The debut of the highly acclaimed Bukhara Biennale in Uzbekistan last autumn also brought the work of many of the artists practising in the region to the fore. New York-based Sapar Contemporary is presenting the work of Kazakh artist Aya Shalkar and Mongolian artist Uuriintuya Dagvasambuu. Both engage with themes of strong feminine characters across ancient civilisations, and cultural traditions of shamanic Tengri in Kazakhstan, Mongol nomads, Tibetan Buddhism and Islam.
Typically addressing cultural identity and gender roles through sculptures, Shalkar utilises speculative fiction and archaeology to visualise stories of female warriors and other mythical beings, as told during the Peri civilisations. Her sculptures are often produced in collaboration with local Kazakh artists and incorporate steel, natural bone, brass and rope. Dagvasambuu puts a surrealist twist on Mongol Zurag painting and Buddhist iconography to depict contemporary versions of female warriors, such as mothers and migrant women, chronicling their everyday lives in her post-nomadic homeland.
Amba Sayal-Bennett
