07 May Art Fairs Can’t Escape the Zombie Apocalypse | News

Source Credit:  Content and images from Ocula Magazine.  Read the original article - https://ocula.com/magazine/art-news/art-fairs-cant-escape-the-zombie-apocalypse/

Mak2, who created a zombie shooter set inside a fair, says survival in the art world requires ‘resilience, innovative thinking, and a thick skin’.

For a year or two after the worst of the pandemic, gallerists and visitors gushed about the art fairs to which they returned, glad to see friends and art again. The honeymoon may be over, though, with grumblings about art fairs on the rise.

Hilde Lynn Helphenstein, who runs the @jerrygogosian instagram account, said of this year’s Frieze New York ‘there’s no mood, there’s no vibe, and no soul.’ She described the venue as ‘not sexy. It’s a shopping mall.’

Art fairs aren’t the best environment to view art, but they remain crucial to the market, constituting some 29% of total sales last year, and 42% in 2019, prior to the pandemic.

We spoke to Hong Kong artist Mak2, maker of the zombie art fair game Art Survivors (2024), about the necessary evil and her wider practice. The exhibition Mak2: Art Survivors is on view at DE SARTHE in Hong Kong until 22 June.

Mak 2: Art Survivors, exhibition view at DE SARTHES Hong Kong, 4 May to 22 June.

Where does your artist name come from?

I was told by a feng shui master that my Chinese name, 麥影彤, has 33 strokes. This number is considered auspicious but not optimal for achieving the highest levels of fame and wealth, which would ideally require 35 strokes. Unwilling to change my original name because it would impact how easily people could find me on Google, I added ‘二’ (meaning ‘two”) to my name, making it 麥影彤二. This not only brought the stroke count to 35 but gave me a unique way to adapt my name in English.

From collectors rushing to acquire the best work to gallerists freaking out about crowds getting too close to the works and reporters chasing quotes and sales figures, art fairs can be panic-inducing. How did you come up with the idea to make a zombie art fair video game?

Whenever I was asked about my next project and I didn’t have an immediate answer, I would jokingly suggest a zombie game at an art fair to fill the conversation gap. This joke was well-received, which I enjoyed, but I never seriously considered making it a reality until a conversation with my gallery director, Allison. She encouraged me to bring this concept to life, pointing out its relatability and potential appeal. Motivated by her enthusiasm, we decided to develop it.

Mak2, Home From Home: Art Survivors 5 (2024). Oil and acrylic on canvas, triptych, 100 x 100 cm. © Mak2. Courtesy DE SARTHE, Hong Kong.

⁠Your show at De Sarthe is called Art Survivors. What makes the art world so dangerous, and what does it take to survive?

The art world can seem dangerous due to its highly competitive nature, the often-precarious financial stability of artists, and the intense scrutiny and criticism that artworks and artists can be subjected to. Survival in this arena requires resilience, innovative thinking, and a thick skin to handle the pressures and challenges. At my show, I’ll be exploring these themes not only through traditional art but also by incorporating interactive elements. One highlight will be the debut of my zombie game set in an art fair, which metaphorically underscores the survival theme. This game allows players to navigate the chaotic, cutthroat environment of the art world, serving as both a literal and figurative representation of the struggle and competition artists face.

Your works are mostly made with traditional materials, especially coloured pencil on paper, and oil and acrylic on canvas. Nevertheless, some of your works remind me of video games, where digital assets are repeated and placed in utopian settings with grassy lawns, blue skies, shiny apartment buildings, and inviting swimming pools. How much does digital imagery influence your eye?

My creative process actually leans heavily into digital realms, particularly with the ‘Home Sweet Home’ series. I use a video game, The Sims, to create and capture dream-like home environments that reflect life in Hong Kong.

The process begins with me manipulating the game to generate scenes that combine both idyllic and traumatic elements of urban living—these scenes are rendered with a perfection that only digital environments can achieve. I then take screenshots of these settings, segmenting each image into thirds.

Mak2, Home From Home: Art Survivors 4 (2024). Oil and acrylic on canvas, triptych, 100 x 100 cm. © Mak2. Courtesy DE SARTHE, Hong Kong.

Then I send each third to different painters on Taobao, a popular online marketplace. I intentionally provide minimal instructions to each painter, which introduces a layer of unpredictability to the final artwork. This method results in a triptych where each panel exhibits noticeable differences in interpretation, skill, and material use, reflecting the inherent discrepancies between fantasy and reality.
This approach allows me to critique and comment on various themes, such as authorship, the pervasive culture of imitation, and narratives surrounding the concept of ‘home’.

By merging digital imagery with physical painting, I explore how digital visuals influence my work and challenge traditional boundaries in art. This method not only highlights the impact of digital aesthetics on my creative vision but also interrogates the authenticity and originality in contemporary art practice. —[O]

Source Credit:  Content and images from Ocula Magazine.  Read the original article - https://ocula.com/magazine/art-news/art-fairs-cant-escape-the-zombie-apocalypse/