Interview by Rui Pastorin
MyLand Culture’s “MACAO&” series made its debut last week with “Into the Radiant Darkness”. The first-ever stop of the project: Lisbon.
The cultural exchange and initiative put together the works of Macau photographer Tang Kuok Ho with the kinaesthetic audio* scores of Lisbon dancer, educator and researcher Inês Zinho Pinheiro, with the exhibition held at the Portuguese capital’s “Procurator.arte”, a cultural association, until October 9.
This is all in a project that brings together creators, artists, and field specialists from diverse cities for meaningful dialogue and mutual friction, MyLand Culture founder and curator Pal Lok Chok told the Post in a recent online interview, highlighting each participant’s “unique cultural context and disciplinary perspective”.
“The project aims to stimulate creative energy through this two-way brainstorming process, generate new experiences and perceptions, and open up entirely new perspectives on cities and cultures for both project participants and audiences across cities”, according to Lok, who, along with co-curator Mary Wong, who also joined the online interview, said they hope the project can foster exchanges while presenting art from Macau.
The exhibition comprises nearly 40 photographs of Macau and Lisbon from Tang’s series “Photosynthesis”, which explores the relationship between artificial light and urban dynamism, alongside two audio scores created by Pinheiro: “Light & movement, echoes & memories” and “Ways of choreoattenting [‘choreographing attention’]” .The former is a near 12-minute audio piece that turns Tang’s series into “kinaesthetic prompts”, translating sensory recollections of Macau into physical movement prompts.
The latter audio walk, meanwhile, acts as a “choreographic device”, using movement instructions and sensory prompts to guide how participants navigate and view Lisbon at night. By disrupting routine movement, it changes how viewers photograph and perceive the city – turning everyday architecture and light into catalysts for new, attention-driven interactions between the body and urban space, Lok added.
Through the two works, co-curator Wong highlighted that they position “the urban landscape as an environment co-produced through two cultural perspectives and art forms, while articulating the various ideologies embedded in the everyday lives of the two cities”.
Wong further explained that the project “evolves through a reciprocal exchange of perspectives”. By alternating between visual and auditory impulses, the exhibition demonstrates that experiencing a city is not just passive observation, but an active physical performance shaped by light and movement, she said.
When it came down to choosing the representative artists, Wong highlighted that they looked at “Locality”, meaning how the artists’ practices distinctively reflect and study their local cultures; “Contrast”, wherein there are different inspirational sources and outcomes despite a similar direction in topic, all eventually paving the way for joint multi-dimensional creation; and “Contemporaneity”, where works focus on present-day reality in Macau and Portugal – reflecting how people actually feel and live today.
Particularly, in choosing the artist from Macau, Wong said that Tang captured all of these points, while adding: “He captures the nuanced ways humans interact with darkness and illumination under Macau’s unique neon-drenched architecture, which is sustained by a synthetic glow”, she said.
Through the entire project, an exchange between the two cities remains important, with Lok noting that this is best achieved through collaboration.
“We believe the key to achieving deeper and more meaningful artistic and cultural exchange lies in inviting artists and institutions from both cities to collaborate on joint creation and curation. The co-creation between the artists in this project is a prime example”, she said.
Moreover, by featuring Tang’s photographic social observation alongside Pinheiro’s sensory and sonic discourse, Lok added that the showcase demonstrates that Macau’s creative output possesses the depth and openness needed for international dialogue, while also being both multi-layered and worthy of deep exploration.
Wong added that the inaugural project, along with the partnership with Procur.arte, has also gathered people who share the same artistic values as well as the same intercultural roots, to further deepen the ongoing artistic bridge between the two cities. “These organic bonds are what we value and hope to develop in the future”.
The curators are excited to expand and build on the foundation created, with Lok adding that it breaks down “barriers between different cultural and artistic fields”.
Another collaboration, this time between Macau and Shenzhen artists focusing on sculpture and sound creation, is set to expand on the framework, slated to launch later this year and aiming to explore “themes related to life and existence, with exhibitions to be held in both Shenzhen and Macau”, Lok added.
Meanwhile, Wong pointed out that interdisciplinarity serves as the core direction of this series and will continue to go hand in hand with inter-cultural exchanges for future editions.
*Kinaesthetic audio is sound specifically designed to make you move, feel physical sensations, or experience space through your body, rather than just passively listening with your ears. - Gemini
MyLand Culture founder and curator Pal Lok Chok (from left to right); Lisbon dancer, educator and researcher Inês Zinho Pinheiro; Macau photographer Tang Kuok Ho; and co-curator Mary Wong pose for a group photo at the recent opening ceremony of the exhibition in Lisbon. – Photos: MyLand Culture.
