A New Era: Reimagining Community Through The Arts
About Hong Kong International Cultural Summit
The Inaugural Hong Kong International Cultural Summit (HKICS) organised by the West Kowloon Cultural District in 2024 brought together more than 2,000 global and cultural visionaries and practitioners for exchange and networking. It was the first and largest international cultural summit in Hong Kong gathering that re-energised the global community of the arts, the museums and cultural institutions after the pandemic during the “Art March 2024” of Hong Kong, attracting an enthusiastic response from across sectors. Time again the HKICS returns this year, also during “Art March 2026” when many large-scale visual arts activities will happen in Hong Kong, with another round of esteemed professional colleagues from around the globe to discuss more in depth the latest developments in the industry, the core value of community and the concerns of professional practitioners.
Digital technology, and in particularly AI, has been developing at rocket high speed. It has changed individuals’ behaviour and community bonding. The ways to understand the world, to experience life and appreciate arts, culture and history are renewed. Traditional communities may break down but new communities may emerge, in physical forms or not or in hybrid mode. Cultural establishments and institutions have to re-invent their roles in society and the world. An intellectual discourse is most timely and Hong Kong, an international city where East meets West, is the most suitable hub for visions, thinkings, experiences and professional expertise to be exchanged, challenged and to inspire reflection, with the greater common hope to find new ideas to benefit more people, to educate the next generation and to enrich our lives and our cultures.
“A New Era: Reimagining Community through the Arts”
Arts and cultural institutions worldwide have learnt to connect with the community through the pandemic by embracing technology. The rapid advancement of digital technology has also prompted arts institutions, arts groups and collectives as well as individual artists and arts practitioners to learn, use and innovate with technologies, no matter in art creation, the ways to present the produced work, art education, marketing, and engagement with various sectors and stakeholders. Now is the time for us to reflect on what we have learnt so far and look beyond.
As arts practitioners, we are passionate about the arts, and committed to fostering artistic creation and transformation. We want to make arts accessible to more people and create positive impact on our community through the power of art. However, in today’s world, especially among younger generations, communication is rapid and multidirectional, making it difficult to achieve the desired impact through traditional one-way approaches. We have to learn and grow with the community. Meanwhile, the term ‘community’ is no longer geographically bound when people in the community can connect on different platforms. This is in fact becoming necessary as more people take travels for longer time with purposes and missions, making themselves ‘residents’ in multiple places. A life of transience is gradually becoming a norm to them. Likewise, other established concepts and understandings are transforming at all levels and on all fronts.
At the upcoming HKICS, we would explore how the arts and culture can sustain growth, and hopefully, advance cultural education, enrich life experience and touch the hearts of individuals amidst the mega environment now changing all the time. The Summit wishes to explore these questions and examine how the arts can foster dialogue, growth, and a search for meaning in life amid a rapidly changing world.
About the West Kowloon Cultural District
The West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK) is a strategic investment by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (the HKSAR) Government to provide the infrastructure for the long–term development of Hong Kong’s arts and culture. As one of the largest and most ambitious cultural hubs in the world and Hong Kong’s new cultural tourism landmark, our goal is to create a vibrant cultural quarter where the local and international arts scenes can interact, develop, and collaborate, strengthening Hong Kong’s strategic role as an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange.
To realise this vision, the HKSAR Government established the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority on 11 July 2008. The Legislative Council also approved an upfront endowment of HK$21.6 billion for developing and operating WestK.
Spanning 40 hectares of reclaimed land alongside Victoria Harbour, WestK integrates a mix of world-class arts and culture facilities, open spaces, hotel, office and residential developments, and retail, dining and entertainment facilities. When complete it will offer about 23 hectares of public open space, a two–kilometre waterfront promenade, and will regularly host a variety of exhibitions, performances, and a wide range of arts and cultural and education events.
Core arts and cultural facilities in WestK that are open to the public include world-class museums M+ and the Hong Kong Palace Museum, intricately designed performing arts venues the Xiqu Centre and Freespace, the 11-hectare Art Park with a 1.2 kilometre waterfront promenade. The WestK Performing Arts Centre (formerly known as the Lyric Theatre Complex) is under construction, with the target of completion in 2026. Upon completion, WestK will feature 6 major performing arts venues, offering a total of over 4,000 seats.
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The content of this/these programme(s)/activity(ies) does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.