Wifredo Lam: Homecoming 《林飛龍：歸徒》

23 March 2024 - 02 June 2024

Asia Society Hong Kong Center proudly presents Wifredo Lam: Homecoming, a wide panorama of one of the most renowned Cuban modern artists.

Chantal Miller Gallery
March 23, 2024 – June 2, 2024
Tuesday – Sunday
11:00am – 6:00pm

Special Opening Arrangement
May 23, 2024 (Thu) : 11 am – 4:30 pm

特別開放安排
2024年5月23日(星期四)：早上11時 – 下午4時:30分

Born in Cuba in 1902, Wifredo Lam represents both the synergy and conflict born out of the merging of multiple cultural traditions: his mother was of Afro-Spanish heritage and his father, of Cantonese roots.

Homecoming marks Wifredo Lam’s first major solo presentation in Hong Kong and also the pivotal return of Lam to Asia - tracing his Chinese father’s lineage and studying the significance of the Chinese diaspora.

An all-inclusive exhibition including prints, personal memorabilia, and paintings, Homecoming covers a range of Wifredo Lam’s key artistic periods: from his time in Havana and Spain in the 1920s to 1938, Paris from 1938 to 1940, Marseille in the early 1940s, and Cuba, France, and Italy in the 1950s and 60s. This exhibition is guest curated by Eskil Lam of the Wifredo Lam Estate, with Hain Yoon as assistant curator and support from Stephane Lam of Le Pavillon Rouge des Arts and the Wifredo Lam Estate.

Visitors are welcome to share their experience on social media by tagging us #ASHKWifredoLam, #ASHKHomecoming or #WifredoLamHomecoming

About the Exhibition 關於展覽

Born in Cuba, Wifredo Lam (1902 – 1982) was the first twentieth-century artist to experience and elevate to the level of art, the convergence and conflicts born out of the intermingling of cultural traditions from five continents. This exhibition presents significant paintings from the great moments of this creative adventure, complemented by a series of drawings and prints by the artist. This will be the first time that a broad panorama of Wifredo Lam’s paintings will be presented to the Hong Kong public.

Wifredo Lam inherited the great Chinese literary tradition from his father, Lam Yam. From his mother, Ana Serafina Castilla, he received African poetic sensibility and a curiosity for the European pictorial tradition. His godmother, Mantonica Wilson, introduced him to the mysteries of the Afro-Cuban religion developed in the West Indies by African slaves uprooted from their homeland.

Lam would rework these various contributions during the 1930s and 40s, in Madrid and Paris, all while incorporating into his work the influence of the avant-gardes of art, cubism and surrealism, as well as the works of Matisse and Picasso. World War II, however, forced Lam to return to Cuba, the land that had nurtured his early imagination. There, far from the hustle and bustle of Paris, he would develop the personal, violent plastic language he had already expressed in Marseille after the frenzy of the exodus while fleeing the German troops invading France.

The exhibition Wifredo Lam: Homecoming, in addition to celebrating a great modernist, cannot fail to raise the question of the possible presence, in his work, of elements from the Chinese pictorial tradition.

We know that, after painting his father’s portrait in 1914 – who was a strong admirer of Sun Yat Sen’s literate tradition and nationalism – Wifredo Lam distanced himself from his family and the Chinese community of Sagua la Grande where he was born, renouncing his nationality in 1923 by acquiring Cuban citizenship, and leaving for Europe in search of the aesthetic means necessary to express the world of violence and pain that inhabited him. At first glance, however, it’s clear that this is not a direct influence; but at best, a climate or poetics.

Lam’s work is drawn even more than it is painted. This can be seen in the importance of the etching technique in the evolution of a body of work that increasingly develops in dialogue with poets: Breton, Char, Mandiargues, Artaud and above all Césaire, the emancipatory brother-in-arms. This recalls the tradition and sensibility of the literati, and we can well imagine the liquidity of the aquatints meeting that of the Chinese washes.

The exhibition Wifredo Lam: Homecoming will be an opportunity to re-examine this emblematic work of our transcultural modernity, whose three elements – graphics, painting and poetry – undoubtedly form its profound framework.

Written by Jacques Leenhardt

林飛龍(1902-1982)，生於古巴，為二十一世紀首位將五大洲文化傳統中的差異和衝突，提煉至藝術層面的藝術家。是次展覽展出其件重要作品，每件皆為他創作旅途上的結晶。連同一系列的繪圖及版畫，展覽前所未有將最全面的林飛龍作品呈現於大眾眼前。

林飛龍從父親林顏身上沾染了文人的風采，自母親安娜・瑟拉非娜・卡斯綈雅繼承了非洲的詩意情懷和對歐洲藝術傳統的好奇。同時，多虧其教母曼托尼加・威爾遜的引導，他走進了非裔古巴宗教的神秘領域，一個由被逼背井離鄉的非洲奴隸於西印度群島所創出的世界。

1930至40年代期間，活躍於馬德里與巴黎的林飛龍著手重新演繹這些林林總總的靈感泉源，並試圖將前衛藝術、立體主義及超現實主義，甚至是馬諦斯、畢加索的風格，融入自己的創作中。可是，機緣巧合之下，第二次世界大戰逼使林飛龍重回古巴，這片早年孕育自己幻想的天地。於此，他遠離巴黎的煩囂，發展出一個極具個人色彩、瀰漫暴力元素的視覺體系。早於馬賽時期，林飛龍已經探索過這獨特的創作模式。當時，他正拼命逃離入侵攻打法國的德軍，名副其實是一名亡命之徒。

是次展覽《林飛龍：歸徒》不僅是要歌頌這位現代主義的大師，更期望籍此提出一個值得反思的問題——究竟林飛龍的作品有否蘊含中國傳統藝術元素？

1914年，林飛龍為自己精忠報國、敬重孫中山先生文人精神的父親，繪畫了一張肖像畫。其後，他便毅然遠走他鄉，不但離家出走，更訣別出生地大薩瓜的華人社區。1923年，他放棄原有國籍，入籍古巴，並遠走歐洲，以尋覓一套全新的藝術手法，表達自己從世間中深感到的痛楚與暴力。值得一提的是，這段經歷並不能被視作對藝術家的單方向影響，它更像是一層充滿詩意的氛圍。

林飛龍的作品，「畫」多於「繪」。這一點從他作品對蝕刻技法的重視表露無遺。這組作品深受布勒東、夏爾、芒迪亞格、阿爾托，尤其是解放戰友塞澤爾等一眾詩人所啟發。在此文人境界中流露著的細膩情懷，觀者彷彿可以目睹蝕刻式凹版畫的幻化與傳統中國水墨的渲染，相互交融的動人一刻。

是次展覽《林飛龍：歸徒》實屬一場難能可貴的機會，讓觀者能重新探討林飛龍於現代意識下所創作的跨文化作品，見證藝術家以圖像、繪畫及詩意等三大元素拼凑出的宏大世界觀。

（Jacques Leenhardt著）

Guided Tours 導賞團

The Public Exhibition Tours are free of charge and walk-in friendly. They are led by ASHK docents, who are trained and knowledgeable in the content of the show to ensure a fruitful experience for visitors.

The tours are held every Saturday and Sunday for the duration of the exhibition at the below times:

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. English
3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Cantonese

An additional tour is held on the last Thursday of each month:

7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. English/Cantonese

Please arrive at the Gallery reception before the tour is scheduled to begin.

Please note:
English (14:30) tours on April 13, 14, 27 and May 4, 11 and June 1 have been cancelled.
以下日期下午2時半的英文導賞已取消：包括4月13日、 14 日、27日及 5 月 4日、 11日及6月1日。

展覽公眾導賞團免費對參觀者開放，無需提前預約。該導賞由亞洲協會香港中心專業的講解員帶領，他們對展覽的內容有充分的了解，以確保參觀者有滿意的體驗。

展覽公眾導賞團在展覽期間的每個星期六和星期日舉行，時間如下：

下午2時30分 – 下午3時30 分英語
下午3時30分 – 下午4時30分粵語

每個月的最後一個星期四有額外的展覽公眾導賞團：

下午7時00分 – 晚上8時00分英語/粵語

請於導賞開始前到達藝術館接待處。

Installation Views 展覽照片