Lawrence Lek’s immersive video game performances blur the boundary between reality and fiction, inviting viewers into a meticulously crafted digital realm where self-driving cars contemplate their existence. The artist explores the myths of technological progress in an age of artificial intelligence and social change.

Lek will be among the leading acts of Tai Kwun’s ‘Artists’ Night’, staged in association with Art Basel Hong Kong. Taking place on Friday, March 28, from 7 pm to 11 pm, the program will celebrate emerging and experimental musicians and visual artists from the region through live performances and installations.

The event will unfold throughout the 19th-century prison and police complex, which has been transformed into one of Hong Kong’s premier art hubs. Visitors will encounter performances and installations spread across the Laundry Steps, F Hall Studio, JC Contemporary, and the Prison Yard.

In the Laundry Steps area, visitors will experience Lawrence Lek’s ‘SimBeijing’ trilogy, an ongoing near-future narrative that portrays a smart city through three works: Black Cloud (2021), NOX (2023), and Empty Rider (2024). Lek combines Sino-futurism with wasteland aesthetics and electronic soundscapes to explore how artificial intelligence impacts human identity, emotions, physical existence, and personal agency.

The Prison Yard will feature a striking new public art commission by Alicja Kwade titled Waiting Pavilions. Seven transparent glass brick structures, resembling prison cells, will create ghostly architectural forms that evoke a sense of obscurity in time and space. The glass pavilions not only resonate with the historical context of the site but also offer a reflection on our history and recent collective experience with the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the F Hall Studio will host a series of experimental performances by cutting-edge artists exploring the intersection of technology, sound, and visual experience. Among the performers is the creative studio affect lab, which presents Bleeding into the Metaverse, an interactive metaverse experience. Every participant will be assigned an avatar designed by the multimedia artist Sputniko!, along with their own avatars that will appear on screens, dancing alongside them in real-time.

‘Our metaverse parties are both an experiment and an opportunity for participants to learn what it’s like to build and play with their own avatar,’ explains affect lab. ‘They are also an opportunity for us to explore hybridity and understand what factors result in fun, interactive, and truly connecting events.’

Also featured at F Hall Studio is 33EMYBW, a fixture of the Shanghai-born, now Manchester-based label SVBKVLT. Known for her conceptual approach to electronic music, 33EMYBW explores ideas around organic and synthetic life through her compositions. Her 2019 album ‘Arthropods’ used invertebrates as a means of exploring animism and the nature of the soul. Having performed at venues including Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin and the festivals SXSW and CTM, her appearance promises to be one of the evening’s highlights.

The ‘Artists’ Night’ is part of a week-long celebration of art at Tai Kwun, which includes extended opening hours, an international brunch for VIP guests, and special exhibition tours. In addition to the performances, visitors can explore solo exhibitions dedicated to Hu Xiaoyuan, Alicja Kwade, and Maeve Brennan.

As Hong Kong’s art scene continues to evolve and embrace experimental practices, ‘Artists’ Night’ stands as a vital platform for showcasing innovative artists pushing the boundaries of digital art, sound, and performance in Asia.