Looking For Antonio Mak, Hong Kong Museum of Art, November-January 2009
When we launched Time Out Hong Kong in March, we never imagined that we would be awarding the Museum of Art the honour of best exhibition of the year. But there is no doubt that Valerie C Doran’s wonderful guest curatorship has caused a ripple of excitement to radiate throughout the city. In Looking for Antonio Mak, Doran searched the world to collect the artworks of the late Hong Kong artist Antonio Mak and commissioned talented local artists to create new works in response to his. The result is an energised look at one of our greatest artists, and the contemporary art scene at large.
 

Runner-up: Chanel Mobile Art, March
It came, it landed like a UFO on the roof of the old Star Ferry car park, and for those who managed to get the free tickets, it brought a wave of fresh energy coursing into the arts scene. Admittedly, there were underlying concerns that this might simply be a massive advertisement as Chanel got British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid and 20 celebrated contemporary artists to create works based on the label’s ‘2.55’ quilted handbag. But when Hadid’s marvellous orb-like container appeared one sunny day in March, with Hong Kong as the first stop on their two-year world tour, we couldn’t help but be impressed. An audio guide led you though Hadid’s organic, shell-like container that revealed a thought provoking mix of photography, installation and sculpture.

2nd Runner-up: Shen Shaomin: Unassailable, Osage Gallery, May
In a year that saw immense political paranoia take hold of China, Shen Shaomin’s solo show at Osage Kwun Tong had a timely potency. Unassailable was intense, exquisite and daring. Shen is one of China’s most fearless and intellectual artists, and Unassailable featured huge, intricate sculptures of Tiananmen Square – cut open to reveal the power hierarchies within. A nearby room showed a digital animation of tanks rolling around the same structures while the second phase of the exhibition showed bonsai trees trapped in torture devices – silently and brilliantly revealing issues of cultural control.

Honourable Mention: History Will Repeat Itself, Goethe Institut, Hong Kong Film Archive & Videotage, June-July
Kudos to the Goethe-Insitut who brought to Hong Kong this remarkable review of the world’s leading media artists who have focused on re-enacting historical moments. The highlight of three-part exhibition was at the Hong Kong Film Archive, where the entire space was transformed with wooden rooms and army-style bean bags allowing audiences to stay in the venue for hours and watch the hysterical and sometimes unsettling video works unfold.

Reader’s Choice: Banksy, Arts Centre & Schoeni Art Gallery, April-May
The Scarlet Pimpernel of the British art scene, graffiti legend Banksy came to the city for the first time. The artist himself wasn’t involved, yet nonetheless, the openings drew large crowds.