Over the past year, more than half of the staff at the Hong Kong Arts Center (HKAC) reportedly left the organization, mostly voluntarily, leaving the 46-year-old nonprofit in a state of flux.
The mass walkout follows the August 2022 departure of former longtime executive director Connie Lam Suk-yee, who had been at the art center since 1997 and at the helm for 13 years. Prior to his resignation, the center had 63 direct employees, according to the organization’s annual report.
Recent departures include program director Teresa Kwong, senior program director Ian Leung and Kattie Fan, director of HKAC’s Ifva Film and Video Festival, the South China Morning Post reported. In total, nearly 40 staff members are no longer with the institution, sources familiar with the situation told Artnet News.
Things have changed in Hong Kong since the implementation of a new national security law in 2020 that may be responsible for perceived censorship at the center, including the cancellation of concerts by pro-democracy singer Denise Ho Wan. -see in 2021 and a musical by a local theater group in June. Hong Kong’s Film Censorship Board has also decided to cancel Ifva 2023 festival screenings which it says contained politically sensitive works.
Connie Lam, former executive director of the Hong Kong Arts Centre. Photo: Edward Wong/South China Morning Post via Getty Images.
But the biggest problem at HKAC seems to be the new management.
Lam’s successor, Rebecca Ip, comes to HKAC after a stint running a private education company that runs preschools and kindergartens, and was previously executive director of Hong Kong Ballet. Sources linked to the institution criticize his lack of experience in the art world.
HKAC derives much of its income from renting out parts of its 19-story building, as well as the rooftop billboard, but has found itself under increasing financial pressure. The advertising company terminated its contract for the building and rental income fell 10% from 2020 levels, thanks to a slowdown in the property market since the start of the pandemic.
“To facilitate the sustainability of its sources of income, HKAC must review and improve its areas of activity, in particular by diversifying activities and courses to include art programs for children,” HKAC told the SCMP in an email.
The Hong Kong Arts Center under construction in May 1977. Photo by CY Yu/South China Morning Post via Getty Images.
But there are growing concerns that HKAC is not doing enough to compete with the visual arts offerings of new competitors such as the West Kowloon Cultural District and Tai Kwun.
“Many leave because they can’t stand to stay and do meaningless programs. And because the new management seems to have little respect for the centre’s close ties to the local arts community,” said a member of the recently deceased staff. SCMP.
This aligns with what Artnet News has learned from sources close to the situation who claimed that external partners who have recently collaborated with HKAC on individual projects are unhappy with the current management, which is not acting in a manner professional and did not respect the people involved.
As of press time, HKAC had not responded to requests from Artnet News.
Additional reporting by Vivienne Chow.
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