• TheArt of Innovative Construction
• Explore sustainable green living with Hong Kong artists

HONG KONG, CHINA- Media OutReach - 21September 2020 - Construction Industry Council -- Zero Carbon Park (CIC-ZCP) proudlypresents: "Art in Construction", an exhibition that gathers localartists to explore and showcase the connection and creativity betweenconstruction and art through various forms including sculptures, installations,paintings, photography, and workshops. Starting from today, "Art inConstruction" is held at the CIC-ZCP in Kowloon Bay and supported by a freeonline virtual exhibition and a guided tour video. By incorporating 360-degreecamera technology, the exhibition allows everyone to experience the creativityof construction, engage with art, and sample what it's like to live a greenerlifestyle.

The Art of InnovativeConstruction

The evolution ofconstruction throughout history demonstrates mankind's creativity andcommitment to sustainability. From building houses and cities with wood andstone to today's use of innovative technology and sustainable methods toestablish communities living in harmony with nature. CIC-ZCP is pleased topresent "Art in Construction", an exhibition and a series of activities thatshowcases the synergy between construction and green living. Like art, theimagination and creativity of construction are both impressive and breath-taking.

Mr. CHONG Kin-lit,Paul, Chairman of CIC-ZCP, remarked in the exhibition's promotional video: "Climatechange is one of the biggest challenges confronting mankind. CIC-ZCP is apioneering and inspiring project serving as a knowledge-sharing platform forindustry practitioners in low carbon building design and technologies. Byorganising various types of promotional activities, it is our mission to increasepublic awareness of low carbon living. Recently, CIC-ZCP has been completelyrenovated with several innovative green initiatives. Allied with the art pieces,we hope to bring an exciting facelift."

'Construction' is morethan an industry. The word itself evokes a sense of mankind's inventive spirit inorder to keep up with modern times. Located at CIC-ZCP, 'Art inConstruction' highlights the creativity of construction and the part technologyplays in turning high-quality green homes into a reality. This gives the publica better insight into the philosophies that go into sustainable design, andbetter appreciation for the creativity and vision behind them". Mr CHONGcontinued.

Construction and artnever stops, even during the pandemic. "Art in Construction" is alsoavailable for free as a virtual tour at www.zcpart.org. By browsing the virtualexhibition, visitors canget a 360-degree view of the exhibits. In addition, a guided tour videowill launch on 25 September, during which the curator and artists will take thepublic into the world of art and construction to understand the stories behind CIC-ZCPand the exhibits.

Thefour themes of "Art in Construction":

Art and Construction:A Crossover Experience

While high-rises andparks are designed meticulously by architects, building desirable homesrequires concerted effort from the community. With painting, toys and buildingblocks, Artist LAM Tung-pang constructs his ideal city--complete withhills, people and high-rises--in the installation, Things Happened on theIsland. He invites visitors to rearrange components to build the city togetherwith him, a process evocative of the collaboration and rapport behind greencommunities and innovative technology in urban development.

Fusing Oriental andNatural Charm

Sustainable development and green livingseem to be relatively modern concepts. In fact, since ancient times, theChinese have long believed in the importance of the symbiosis between man andnature. Referencing natural elements like water and wind, veteran Hong KongSculptor LEE Chin-fai, Danny has created Urban Waterscape, agroup of outdoor sculptures that double as benches for public use. Artist LAUHok-shing, Hanison has combined Penjing, or miniature landscapes in Sitting Table -- Hong Kong, with Chinese Ta, a type of platformseating, to create a space for outdoor recreation where people can meet andrelax. With artistic craftsmanship, Lee and Lau demonstrate mankind's philosophyof co-existing with all things in nature, whilst also preserving tradition andillustrating the possibilities of green living.

Concerns about Environmental Issues

This year, temperatures in the ArcticCircle reached a new peak of 20 degrees Celsius, while carbon emissions invarious regions are still on the rise. As people pursue their ideal homes,global warming and the greenhouse effect remain acute issues that need to beaddressed. Many artists around the world are emphasising the importance ofenvironmental protection with their art. Photographer LAU Chi-chung hasbeen portraying the countryside for many years. In Landscaped Artifacts,he has created a beautiful composition of woods and village houses that conveythe tension between human expansion and the forces of nature. Painter YUENChun-tai, Ivy has spent half a year walking through multiple hiking trailsalongside reservoirs in Hong Kong. A series of drawings named Forestry illustratesthe rise and fall of Hong Kong's horsetail pine population and how it parallelsthe city's urbanisation, as well as increase in plantation projects and thethreat of pests.

Sculptor MOK Yat-sanoften depicts polar bears, one of the victims of global warming, in various forms.The name of the art piece Beware of the PBear is a humorous but thought-provoking reminder to bear in mind theseverity of climate change. Another one of MOK's exhibits, Lovingkindness,resembles traditional Penjing (the ancient Chinese art of depictingtrees and landscape in miniature) by condensing architecture and juxtaposingthe mini-scenery with a polar bear. Visitors can then get a bird's eye view ofthe landscape from above, shedding their physical limitations, and exploringthe organic relationships between landscape, trees and rocks in miniature form.The intention of using Penjing is also so that visitors can visualisethemselves taking a leisurely stroll through the scenery.

Practise Green Living

Humans are like builders of life. Similarly,artists are mindful of sustainability in their everyday lives and practices too.In Modern Landscape, Artist WONGChun-yam, Leo upcycles rocks and cement fragments collected fromconstruction sites to form sculptures, recreating the stories once told by thestructures themselves. Meanwhile, Artist Duo MUDWORK invites visitors topractise green living through their artistic creation, Tree Call which makesuse of wood fragments to create small DIY bird whistles. Farmside ArtResearch Lab (Part-farmer, part-artist Monti LAI and cross-disciplinary artist MeikiLEE) is inviting the public toparticipate in the Roving with Bamboo Ink -- Nature Is Art workshop. Theworkshop is designed to take place in the familiarity of home and to initiateone's connection with nature through breathing exercises, creative poetry, anddrawings created by ink pressed from vegetable leaves.

Photos Download: https://bit.ly/3mwzAFM

"Art inConstruction" Programmes

Date                                18 September (Friday) to 17 October 2020 (Saturday)

Location                        ConstructionIndustry Council -- Zero Carbon Park

                                        8 SheungYuet Road, Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong

Time                               09:00-- 20:00 (Indoor) ; 07:00 -- 20:00 (Outdoor)

OnlineExhibition        www.zcpart.org

Guided Tour Video    Launch on 25 September 2020 (Friday)

Workshop Video         Rovingwith Bamboo Ink -- Nature Is Art

                                        Launchon 26 September 2020 (Saturday)

"Art in Construction" Exhibits and Workshop Highlight

Things Happened on the Island

Acrylics, charcoal, pencil, scale modeland wooden toys on plywood

LAM combines painting with a three-dimensionalmodel and invites visitors to join the creative process in a humorous andinteresting way. Visitors can use the toy blocks to create their own idealcities as an extension to the scene.

LEE Chin-fai, Danny:

Urban Waterscape

Stainless steel, iron

Derived from the concept ofthree-dimensional papercutting, the installation tries to capture the movementof flowing water by simulating the silhouette of waves and ripples, forming aninteresting and welcoming urban waterscape.

LAU Hok-shing, Hanison:

Sitting Table -- Hong Kong

Wood, daily objects

An art piece that doubles as a benchthat people can sit or lay on. By using regularly available materials anddiscarded items found on the street, elements of a garden are combined tocreate mountains and rivers in order to demonstrate enjoyment in life is notmerely based on materialism.

LAU Chi-chung:

Landscaped Artifacts

Photography

Seasonal changes make the process ofcreation a volatile one. By capturing the ruins found in nature, LAU's workbears witness to lived lives and passed time. Mankind made his mark on the landhe walked, but Mother Nature is now taking her turn to give it a makeover.Though unable to turn back the clock, she has transformed the land into anenvironmental sculpture.

YUEN Chun-tai, Ivy:

Forestry

Installation

After reading through century-oldreports from the Hong Kong Botanical and Afforestation Department, YUEN walkedalong reservoirs small and large, trying to find the remaining horsetail pines(Pinus Massoniana) in Hong Kong -- hundreds of thousands of which hadbeen planted (now gone) in order to present the tree-planting history ofprevious generations.

MOK Yat-sun:

Be Aware of the P Bear

Painted fibreglass

It seems surreal that a polar bear is lyingon an open space in the heart of an urban metropolis. Although we are manymiles from the Arctic, as a member of the "Global Village", how can we turn ablind eye to the threat of global warming? The surreal artwork reminds us ofthe need to strike a balance between urban development and nature conservation.

MOK Yat-sun:

Lovingkindness

Stainless steel & gold sheets

MOK's work resembles the design ofChinese Penjing with a view to portraying an elegant world within amicroscopic setting. Visitors can get a bird's eye view of the landscape and explorethe organic relationships between landscape, trees and rocks amongst theminiatures. A close look further helps unlock the imagination, taking the mindon a leisurely stroll of the garden.

WONG Chun-yam, Leo:

Modern Landscape

Mixed media

WONG upcycles rocks and cement fragmentscollected from construction sites into architectural sculptures, recreating thestories once told by the structures themselves.

MUDWORK:

Tree Call

Installation

The trees may remember the birds singingand the birds may remember the trees. However, the birds can no longer beheard. Through processing local wood and turning it into bird whistles, thetune of nature can be heard again.

FarmSide Art Research Lab: Roving with Bamboo Ink -- Nature Is Art
Workshop
The Bamboo Ink -- Nature Is Art workshop is designed to take place in thefamiliarity of home and to initiate one's connection with nature throughbreathing exercises, creative poetry, and drawings created by ink pressed fromvegetable leaves.

About the Construction Industry Council

The Construction Industry Council (CIC)was formed in 2007 under the Construction Industry Council Ordinance (Cap.587). The CIC consists of a chairman and 24 members representing varioussectors of the industry including employers, professionals, academics,contractors, workers, independent persons and Government officials.

The main functions of the CIC are toforge consensus on long-term strategic issues, convey the industry's needs andaspirations to the Government, provide professional training and registration services,and serve as a communication channel between the Government and theconstruction industry. Please visitwww.cic.hk for further details.

About CIC-Zero Carbon Park

Establishedin June 2012 and located in 8 Sheung Yuet Road, Kowloon Bay, CIC-Zero CarbonPark (CIC-ZCP) is the first zero carbon building in Hong Kong developed by theConstruction Industry Council (CIC) in collaboration with the Government.CIC-ZCP is an exhibition and education centre for advanced ecological buildingdesign, as well as an information centre for low/zero carbon buildingtechnologies, promoting low carbon living and the development of smart city inHong Kong.

Website https://zcp.cic.hk/chi/home

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