The software company’s new chief business officer has plans to bring NFTs into M+, with the belief that art is for all
Hidden among the fine art galleries in Wong Chuk Hang is Alan Lau’s “cave of wonders”, where— albeit somewhat random in curation—one can find some of the contemporary art world’s most sought-after and bizarre pieces in his personal collection: an ice vinyl disc by Japanese artist Lyota Yagi that melts and changes in sound as it’s being played to highlight the passing of time; 5,000-year-old neolithic urns painted—or vandalised, depending on one’s take—with colourful industrial paint by Chinese visual artist Ai Weiwei; Austrian artist Erwin Wurm’s One Minute Sculptures, which requires Lau to use his forehead to balance three stacked-up oranges as part of a performance piece that mocks the disconnection between sculptures and everyday life.
His passion for art extends beyond his treasure trove. He serves as the vice-chairman of M+; he is one of the brains behind the visual culture museum’s Yayoi Kusama show that opened last month, which is the biggest exhibition of the artist’s work in Asia outside Japan. Outside Hong Kong, he is the co-chair of both the Asia Pacific Acquisition Committee of London’s Tate Modern and the Asia Art Circle of New York’s Guggenheim Museum. In other words, Lau is in charge of determining what is displayed in the exhibition halls of three of the world’s major art institutions.
These roles would have been intimidating for even experienced art collectors and advisors. But when Tatler met Lau in October this year, he says—in a composed tone, while sipping his iced black coffee in the afternoon sun—that he attends to his art duties during his spare time, when he’s not working at his full-time job, landed in July this year, as the chief business officer of Animoca Brands, the Hong Kong-based game software and venture capital company founded by Web3 mogul Yat Siu.
On top of his 16-year experience of collecting art, his involvement in the technology scene might just give him the edge as a visionary in fostering art development today, when digital art, art tech and NFTs are flourishing alongside more traditional media in the art market, major cultural venues and even industries like fashion. He is a firm believer that art is more than just an image or object. “It’s a concept,” he says. Aside from having aesthetic and technical skills, an artist, he believes, should have a story to tell.
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