Remains of a Travelling Battered Wing
14.06.2009 – 12.07.2009

Remains of a Travelling Battered Wing is a solo exhibition of mixed media works by the Hong Kong based, Filipino artist Arnel S. Agawin. The exhibition, which comprises drawings, paintings, video and installation, takes as its starting point, a journey of discovery by Agawin to the inner recesses of Hong Kong’s psyche. It is a journey he had to make in becoming a resident of Hong Kong and making this place his home. Being a ‘circumstantial migrant and willing adoptee’ of this city, it became obvious to him, soon after his arrival to Hong Kong that he had to adapt ‘to confront inevitable cultural impositions’. It is therefore not only a journey about his process of assimilating into the specific social and cultural context of Hong Kong, but also an attempt to transform this context.

The centerpiece of Agawin’s exhibition is called Remains of a Travelling Battered Wing and it is a singular wing made from twigs, leaves and handmade paper that is a ‘representation of a person’s hopes and dreams. It is made of materials that evoke the travails of a once airborne soul trying to get back on flight or the leftover wing of the proverbial moth who dived straight into the flame and survived’.

There is also a performative element to this exhibition. Agawin plans to carry Remains of a Travelling Battered Wing from his home in Quarry Bay to the gallery in Soho and he plans to make the walk barefoot.

This performance is symbolic of the journey he had to make in adapting to life in Hong Kong, barefoot so that he can make a ‘better connection to the earth’ whilst bearing his wing. A documentation video of this performance and interaction with passersby will be part of the exhibition.