Korean digital design firm d'strict has chosen Hong Kong as the first overseas destination for its immersive media art exhibition as it bids to expand across China.
d'strict wants its Arte Museum to become a global chain like Madame Tussauds and Hong Kong was chosen as China is one of the biggest art markets in the world and it hopes to collaborate with Chinese artists in the future.
Arte Museum will be located at the 11 Skies mall within the airport's SkyCity, and the exhibition will be a permanent attraction with more artworks added, following its 15-month Arte M showcase at K11 HACC in Quarry Bay, which opened earlier this month.
d'strict expects at least 30 to 40 percent of the art to be related to Hong Kong culture, says chief executive Sean Lee.
Arte Museum at 11 Skies will open by the end of 2023 at the earliest and Lee expects it to attract between 6,000 to 8,000 visitors a day from the Greater Bay Area, once all travel restrictions are lifted.
Operated by New World Development's (0017) high-end lifestyle brand K11, the 3.8 million-square-foot 11 Skies is being built beside Terminal 2 of the Hong Kong International Airport and AsiaWorld-Expo and is expected to become the city's largest hub for retail, dining and entertainment when completed.
The first phase of 11 Skies, which includes three Grade A office towers, opened in June while the entertainment phase is scheduled to open in phases from late 2023.
11 Skies is also close to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and is expected to attract visitors from the Greater Bay Area including Macau and nine cities in Guangdong province.
Lee says the main concept of the exhibition is "eternal nature," adding that its production team is looking at melding Hong Kong's natural landscapes, skyscrapers and famous food with immersive media technology.
COLLABORATIONS WITH K11
Founded in 2004, d'strict provides localized content in immersive media art exhibitions using "breathtaking visuals, sensuous sounds and elegant fragrances to create a spectacularly immersive experience."
It currently has three immersive art exhibitions under themes related to islands, oceans and mountains in different regions of South Korea, which have together attracted a total of 3.2 million visitors since they opened about 23 months ago.
Apart from exhibitions, d'strict also offers commercial services to corporate clients including customized media art content and licensing of intellectual property
d'strict plans to expand its footprint to major cities in the mainland such as Beijing or Shanghai, continuing its collaboration with K11. "China is currently perhaps the largest market in the world," Lee says, adding that d'strict has looked at several cities with K11 but has not finalized the next destination.
K11 is present in five cities in the mainland and is expected to expand to a total of 10 major cities in Greater China by 2026.
NWD chief executive Adrian Cheng Chi-kong revealed that his group would invest 10 billion yuan (HK$11.24 billion) over 12 months on land in top-tier Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Shenzhen.
Lee says Covid travel restrictions are a current hurdle for d'strict's expansion, but is hopeful that curbs will be eased by the middle of next year. Meanwhile, d'strict is also considering taking its museum to top destinations in the US such as New York and Los Angeles, as well as to the Middle East.
"We would like to make our museum brand something like Madame Tussauds. There are more than 20 Madam Tussauds in major cities worldwide and I believe the content and experience of our Arte Museum can also be appreciated globally," Lee says.
Looking ahead, Lee says d'strict also plans to move its museum content online in the next five years, as global tech giants further develop the metaverse - an immersive virtual world where users work, play, shop and socialize using emerging technologies such as augmented and virtual reality.
"I believe we need to move forward this would be another big business opportunity if we can perfectly present our artwork with the same quality online, Lee says.
Also, Lee believes that non-fungible tokens could be another revenue stream for d'strict in the future and is looking forward to working with Chinese artists.
Lee says he does not expect to sell billions of dollars of NFTs but it would offer a stable source of revenue and a new way to buy and sell artwork through blockchain technology, adding that d'strict would be more appealing to Chinese visitors if it is able to collaborate with local artists in the mainland.
NATURAL ATTRACTION: One of d’strict’s exhibits.
MEGA ATTRACTION: A rendering of 11 Skies.
