The 「CONVERSATIONS」 section of this year’s fair was proudly presented by official partner Standard Chartered. It brought together renowned experts and distinguished guests from the fields of photography, image collection, and cultural arts, hosting over ten in-depth conversations on creative practice and market trends in image collecting. Among them, the special session on May 8 — “Reflecting Flow – The Changing Image of Chinese Diaspora in Global Visual Culture” — stood out as a highlight.
The portrayal of Chinese diaspora on screen has evolved from being “defined by others” to “telling their own stories.” Mr. Simon Yam, a celebrated Hong Kong actor and visual artist, has spent 40 years moving from “being watched” on screen to “actively observing” behind the camera. In this dialogue, he was joined by Li Feng (Deputy CEO of Standard Chartered China, Head of Wealth Management & Retail Banking, and Head of Global Chinese Business Group) and Cao Dan (President of Supermedia Group’s Art Platform). Together they explored how the image of Chinese diaspora has been presented and culturally contextualized over the past century, and deconstructed the visual narratives and identity constructions behind these representations.
The session was filled to capacity and received enthusiastic feedback from the audience.
