Blanton and HKBU mix AI with art

Hong Kong Baptist University said on April 27 that its 2026 Symphony Orchestra gala will combine symphonic music, digital technology and artificial intelligence in one live show. (tmcnet.com) The university announced the concert at a press conference on April 27 and said the performance will be staged at the East Kowloon Cultural Centre, which it called the venue’s first orchestral show combining art-tech and AI since opening. (tmcnet.com) Hong Kong Baptist University said the gala carries the theme “Live Music ReIMAGINEd” and follows last year’s annual concert, which used brainwave technology in a program attended by nearly 1,200 people. (tmcnet.com) (hkbu.edu.hk) The clearest sign of what Hong Kong Baptist University is trying to stage is Sophia, the humanoid robot created by Hanson Robotics, which the university said will perform three songs with the live orchestra. (tmcnet.com) The university said Associate Professor of Practice Lam Kwan-fai arranged three original songs for Sophia, and that students will recreate scenes from the video game “Black Myth: WuKong” through live dance during a performance of “The Legend of WuKong.” (tmcnet.com) Hong Kong Baptist University has been building this art-and-technology program for several years. Its Institute for Innovation, Translation and Policy Research says it established the Turing AI Orchestra in 2022 as an artificial-intelligence ensemble for human-machine performance. (iit.hkbu.edu.hk) A similar mix is already on view in Austin. The Blanton Museum of Art’s “Run the Code,” open from March 8 to August 2, presents artists including Refik Anadol, teamLab and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer using algorithms, data and generative AI as artistic material. (blantonmuseum.org) (blantonmuseum.b-cdn.net) The Blanton said the exhibition is organized with the Thoma Foundation and divided into five sections, including “Interactivity,” “Data-Driven Systems” and “Remixing Art History.” (blantonmuseum.b-cdn.net) A related push is underway at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. Xinhua reported on April 27 that the academy’s performing arts program ranked 10th globally and first in Asia in the March QS World University Rankings, while students moved between traditional stagecraft and AI-generative tools during more than 100 free public performances and exhibitions in March. (china.org.cn) Across the museum in Austin and the campuses in Hong Kong, the common pitch is that code, robots and generative systems belong inside established art institutions, not outside them. (blantonmuseum.org) (tmcnet.com) (china.org.cn)