COURTESY THE ARTIST
To mark the 35th anniversary of its “Concentrations” series, which focuses on emerging and underrepresented artists, the Dallas Museum of Art announced today that it plans to host its first international edition of the series, with artist and dealer Margaret Lee in Hong Kong.
“Concentrations HK: Margaret Lee” will be shown at Duddell’s, a central Hong Kong art space, from March 21 through June 21 of this year, the opening timed with Art Basel Hong Kong. For the show, Lee will create a site-specific work that “explores the image, object, and gesture as an embodiment of desire,” according to a press release. The show will be organized by Gabriel Ritter, the DMA’s assistant curator of contemporary art.
Lee plans to display iconic works from the DMA’s collection onto the walls of the gallery with a trompe l’oeil wallpaper design, and will also present a new series of photos that “directly address ideas surrounding cultural exchange, fetish, and aesthetic representations of power,” according to the release. It continues:
This juxtaposition is meant to decontextualize iconic objects and images, thereby destabilizing established signs and signifiers. In Lee’s work, the act of presentation becomes a subject unto itself, with her objects and images working to address larger issues around desire and power.
In a statement, Ritter said:
“Margaret Lee is an ideal choice for the Concentrations series’ debut during Art Basel Hong Kong as she is both a deft ambassador for, and inquisitor of the DMA’s permanent collection. Her site-specific project will introduce the DMA to a Hong Kong audience while challenging us to rethink the role of the contemporary in an encyclopedic collection,” said Ritter. “The DMA is excited to work with Duddell’s to realize Margaret Lee’s first solo presentation in Asia. As a non-conventional art space, Duddell’s represents the intersection of art, fashion and design that is unique to Hong Kong—all of which are central to Margaret’s project.”