Trevor Yeung: Courtyard of Attachments, Hong Kong in Venice

Trevor Yeung: Courtyard of Attachments, Hong Kong in Venice is Hong Kong’s Collateral Event at the 60th International Art Exhibition—the Venice Biennale. This solo exhibition of new works by Trevor Yeung is organised by M+ and the Hong Kong Arts Development Council and curated by Olivia Chow, Assistant Curator, Visual Art, M+.

Yeung explores sentimentality, desire, and relationships of power through the concept of attachment, which manifests as feelings of connection with objects as well as a longing for someone special. The exhibition articulates the artist’s intimate experiences and keen observations of the relationships between humans and aquatic systems, drawing from references that include his father’s seafood restaurant, pet shops, feng shui arrangements, and the fish he kept as a child.

The exhibition consists of eleven new artworks, four of which are specific to Venice and respond to the architecture of the venue. Yeung articulates his fascination with artificiality in nature and urban space with aquariums that are fully operational but contain no fish. At the heart of the exhibition are the works Little Comfy Tornado and Cave of Avoidance (Not Yours). Little Comfy Tornado consists of a miniature tornado whirling inside a small fish tank placed atop a tower of stacked plant stools. It is connected to a professional-grade filtration system through a network of tubing, a seemingly excessive support mechanism that evokes a sense of unease. Cave of Avoidance (Not Yours) is an immersive installation that recreates the interior of a pet shop, with aquariums devoid of fish. By omitting the fish from the meticulously arranged row of tanks, Yeung leads us to reconsider our motivations for creating artificial environments designed to condition or control other living beings. His presentation combines familiar elements of Hong Kong visual and material culture in an immersive environment that brings deeply felt emotions to the surface.

Trevor Yeung (born 1988, Guangdong) was raised, lives, and works in Hong Kong. In his artistic practice, he excavates the logic of closed systems and the ways in which they create and contain emotions and behaviour. Fascinated by ecology, horticulture, and aquatic ecosystems, Yeung presents carefully staged objects, photographs, animals, and plants in his mixed-media works to address human relationships and the artificiality of nature.

Yeung has participated in the Biennale of Sydney (2024); the Singapore Biennale (2022); the Kathmandu Triennale (2022); la Biennale de Lyon (2019); EVA International, Dublin (2018); the Dhaka Art Summit (2018); and the Shanghai Biennale (2015). His work has been exhibited at institutions including Gasworks, London (2023); Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris (2022); Tai Kwun Contemporary, Hong Kong (2022); Jameel Arts Centre, Dubai (2022); PinchukArtCentre, Kyiv (2021); M+, Hong Kong (2021); Power Station of Art, Shanghai (2021); Para Site, Hong Kong (2020); and Stiftung Skulpturenpark Köln (2020). He was shortlisted for the Sigg Prize 2023, the Future Generation Art Prize in 2021, and the BMW Art Journey award in 2015.

Yeung’s work is held in the collections of Centre Pompidou, Paris; Stiftung Skulpturenpark Köln; Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris; Kadist Art Foundation, Paris and San Francisco; FRAC Alsace; and M+, Hong Kong.

Olivia Chow is a curator and artist living in Hong Kong. As Assistant Curator, Visual Art, at M+, she works with artists to create exhibitions, publications, and public programmes, including Nalini Malani: In Search of Vanished Blood (2012/2022), Nalini Malani: Vision in Motion (2021), Shirley Tse: Stakes and Holders (2020), and Shirley Tse: Stakeholders, Hong Kong in Venice (2019), Hong Kong’s Collateral Event at the 58th International Art Exhibition—La Biennale di Venezia. Chow contributes to building M+’s visual art collection by managing the inaugural M+ International Council for Visual Art and leading acquisitions from around Asia and beyond. Prior to joining M+, she worked in various curatorial capacities at Para Site in Hong Kong (2015–17) and at The Works Art and Design Festival in Edmonton, Canada (2010–14).