The Macau Artist Society (MAS) this year marks its 70th anniversary, and the milestone was commemorated on Saturday with the opening of a large-scale exhibition at Sands Macao in Nape.
Located on the resort’s Level 4 ballroom and exhibiting 198 artworks until September 15, “Art in the New Era – The 70th Anniversary Invitational Exhibition of the Macau Artist Society” features pieces by artists from Macau, Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and China’s Taiwan region, as well as those from France, Japan, South Korea, and the US.
The ongoing showcase is organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) and MAS, in conjunction with Sands China and is supported by the Federation of Associations of Cultural Sectors of Macau.
During Saturday’s ceremony, IC President Deland Leong Wai Man, as summarised in an MAS statement on Saturday, pointed out that the association has upheld the spirit of patriotism and love for Macau, participating in local cultural development and maintaining close collaboration with the bureau, as well as significantly contributing to Macau’s cultural growth.
Leong represented Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Wallis O Lam at the event.
Highlighting the exhibits, MAS President Lok Hei was noted in the statement as saying in his speech that the exhibition presents a raft of styles and media “in response to the new artistic currents of the era”, adding that the society will “continue to uphold its founding principles”.
Moreover, Sands China Executive Vice Chairman Wilfred Wong Ying Wai pointed out in in his speech the significance of the group’s contributions to the growth of Macau’s cultural and artistic sector, adding that that the company is “deeply honoured to have built strong relationships with local artists and cultural groups through various art exhibitions and exchange programmes, working together with the Society [MAS] to advance the development of Macau’s arts and culture”.
The following day, the extended activity “New Pathways for Macao Fine Arts” forum was held at Sands Macao, bringing together expert and academic speakers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau.
Hosted by local art magazine Fantasia’s Executive Editor-in-Chief Cheong Sio Pang, the forum featured four speakers: Mo Xiaoye, a former professor at the School of Art and Design of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University; Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST) Faculty of Humanities and Arts Distinguished Prof. Guilherme Ung Vai Meng; Cultural Development Consultative Committee member Chan Hou Seng; and University of Macau (UM) Department of Fine Arts Associate Prof. Ng Sau Wa.
A separate MAS statement yesterday noted that representatives from the local art scene, along with over 100 university students, as well as artists from the Chinese mainland and abroad, were in attendance, altogether seeing discussions on the “development prospects of Macau fine arts amid the transformations in the contemporary era”.
This photo provided by Sands China on behalf of the Macau Artist Society (MAS) shows officiating guests and representatives posing before cutting the ribbon during the opening ceremony of “Art in the New Era – The 70th Anniversary Invitational Exhibition of the Macau Artist Society” at Sands Macao on Saturday.
