Hidden Space is delighted to present Well-lit, a solo exhibition by Li Hiuwa curated by Kobe Ko. Li’s installation subtly examines sensations of time passing and our perceptions of the visible. From entire photosensitive walls slowly darkening, to video that seems to slow man-made actions, Li muses on what can be seen and experienced, and our means of doing so.

 

Li uses multiple forms originating from still photography and moving images. Silver gelatin, the light-sensitive component from film, is mixed with plaster to cover the walls. For the duration of the exhibition, they will undergo a gradual developing process without offering up any recognisable image. In another material conundrum, a photograph documents a blocked but now partially built entrance inside the exhibition space, creating echoing layers of simultaneous physical and visual experience. A video made up of still shots and reverse editing juxtaposes both jumping and linear time to show a stack of ordinary pieces of tape almost imperceptibly diminishing layer by layer.

 

Through his approach to material experimentation, Li examines the fragility of representation, how we validate experience, and questions at what point and on what timeline imagery or objects exist for us. These are contemplative works that reward slow exploration.

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Li Hiuwa (HK) received his BA from the Academy of Visual Arts at the Baptist University of Hong Kong in 2014 and is currently completing his MFA at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His expanded lens-based practice often utilises the fragile or fugitive material aspects of photographic processes to examine ephemeral sensations of time passing, capturing subtle changes wrought through light.

 

Kobe Ko (HK) is an independent curator and artist. She was Assistant Curator at Para Site (2021–2023), Art Education and Gallery Coordinator at Tai Kwun Contemporary (2019–2021). She has curated 'Cantando Bajito: Incantations' (Ford Foundation Gallery, New York, 2024), ‘Everyday life in Hong Kong and Fukuoka: The study of Contemporary Arts and Kougengaku’ (art space tetra, Fukuoka, 2023), ‘Post-Human Narratives’ series (Cattle Depot Artist Village and Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences, Hong Kong, 2020–2022), among others.

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