Fast forward to today, and you can find a display of performance art at this year’s Art Central, which is taking place at Central Harbourfront from March 28 to 31. Enoch Cheng, the curator of Art Central, has designed a performance art piece called Art-Is-Here-Picnic (2024), which sees curators, artists and guests sharing sandwiches and cakes on the floor in the exhibition area. Cheng describes his piece as “a little bit naughty and fun” which will hopefully challenge the capitalist concept of an art fair. “People usually rush through an art fair. I want to create a moment of encounter [between visitors, artists and gallerists,” he says. “It’s a real picnic, and each [unit] is led by an art professional who are trained and have been rehearing to lead visitors to talk about art—which, like curatorial tours in a museum context, is often charged expensively. Here, these art experts try to really be with you.”
This year’s Art Central will also feature Japanese performance artist Noriko Sunayama, who is known for A Sultry World (1995-), a piece which involves her wearing a giant crimson dress that visitors can crawl into. “All the things that I curate is to arouse people’s curiosity. The big red dress will be the first thing you see at the art fair. The colour just confronts your senses. People can touch it, play with it, smell it. It gives you a lot of room for imagination,” says Cheng.
“It’s very important that even in an art fair, which is a place for business, we still ask: in 2024, what do we believe in art?”
