Art Basel Hong Kong lineup
Art Basel Hong Kong returns March 27–29 with citywide shows and big institutional projects — highlights called out include Chan Wai Lap’s immersive 'Swimming' bathhouse at Oil Street, Lee Bul’s 'failed utopias,' and Shahzia Sikander’s '3 to 12 Nautical Miles' co‑commission with M+ (wallpaper.com) (ft.com). Dealers like Pearl Lam are pitching hybrid gallery models as the fair navigates market uncertainty (artsy.net).
Chan Wai-lap’s site-specific Jeremy’s Bathhouse at Oi! Glassie transforms the Oil Street venue into a bathhouse‑like environment centred on “LEVO LOVE,” a heart‑shaped pool set into a surface of more than 1,200 handcrafted Jingdezhen ceramic tiles. (zolimacitymag.com)) The artist’s pool‑inspired work is also being presented in the UBS Art Studio and he is scheduled for an Art Basel conversation on March 28, linking his Oi! project with fair programming. (artbasel.com)) M+ opens a career‑spanning survey, Lee Bul: From 1998 to Now, co‑organised with Seoul’s Leeum Museum of Art and mounted in the West Gallery as a comprehensive three‑section show running in the spring–summer season. (mplus.org.hk)) The M+ presentation brings together the artist’s Mon grand récit installations (begun in 2005) alongside two‑dimensional and performance documentation, comprising a touring retrospective that publicity materials and listings say includes more than 200 works. (artforum.com)) Shahzia Sikander’s M+ Facade commission, 3 to 12 Nautical Miles, is a hand‑painted animated tableau co‑commissioned by M+ and Art Basel and presented by UBS for large‑scale screening on the M+ LED facade through June 21. (mplus.org.hk)) Sikander will give a premiere artist talk as part of Art Basel’s Conversations series on March 25, tying the facade commission to the fair’s onsite program. (artbasel.com)) Longstanding dealers including Pearl Lam have publicly argued for a flexible, “hybrid” gallery strategy that blends physical programming with global digital reach as a response to current market conditions. (observer.com)) Industry data cited by UBS show a sharp contraction in regional auction activity in 2025—auction sales in Mainland China and Hong Kong fell roughly 38% year‑on‑year—context that dealers say is driving experimentation with new gallery models ahead of the fair. (ubs.com))
