General Preface
When Macao, a city with over four centuries of Chinese and Western cultural integration, initiates an artistic dialogue with greetings reminiscent of those of a customs officer: “Hey, what brings you here?” it is an earnest invitation to the global art scene and also a resounding response from contemporary cultural workers on the propositions of the times.
This year, the chief curator of the Biennale, Mr. Feng Boyi, upholds the curatorial concept of “questioning means action” and unfolds a reflective space about existence as well as time and space in the main exhibition venue. Xu Bing reflects upon the human civilization through satellite images of lakes. Bart Hess captures the subtle interplay between fashion and the human body with waxed clothing. Gregor Schneider reconstructs the physical laws of spatial awareness with architectural installations. Tobias Rehberger leverages the systematic construction of social spaces to explore the dialectical relationship between humanity and its physical environment that speaks of the mutual permeation of subject and object… Many boundary-breaking masterpieces have created a poetic realm from the tension between reality and hyperreality, guiding the audience to explore the profound meaning of the symbiosis between individuals and the world through ultimate questions: “Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going?”
Themed “Waves & Ways,” the Public Art Exhibition centers around fluidity, presenting a series of conceptual experiments on social aesthetics. Ann Hamilton extracts artistic symbols from folk religions and unleashes the narrative potential of a World Heritage building as a historical and cultural stage, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Macao’s inscription of the Historic Centre on the World Heritage List. Yin Xiuzhen sublimates the mechanical cycles of luggage conveyors into a philosophical metaphor of life trajectories, deconstructing the linear view of time with the coexistence of movement and stillness. Jason Ho constructs a social microscope with participatory arts through a “neighborhood living room,” extracting the humanistic spirit from the social fabric of Macao. With Macao designated as a “Culture City of East Asia,” artists from China, Japan, and South Korea are invited to jointly create a public art installation centered on the Oriental philosophy on time and space, commemorating the deep cultural bonds among East Asian cities.
The City Pavilion section is curated in close association with the Macao SAR Government’s administrative policies. It features two city pavilions, one from China and one from Portugal, fortifying Macao’s strategic positioning as a “cultural exchange center for China and Portuguese-speaking countries,” which aligns with the city’s development toward a “base for exchange and cooperation where Chinese culture is the mainstream and diverse culture coexist” (referred to as “One Base”).
The Special Exhibitions organized by the six integrated resort operators are a distinctive section of Art Macao. This year’s Special Exhibitions form a kaleidoscopic art fair, featuring contents ranging from the Picasso’s prints, which were inspirational to modernity, and Cai Guo-Qiang’s AI-driven multi-dimensional fireworks theatre, to Bruno Moinard’s the deconstruction of French Art Deco’s poetic of space; from The Hass Brother’s the light installations storing industrial memories and Craig & Karl’s dopaminergic aesthetic fantasy, to a digital nirvana of Jingdezhen kiln fire in 4K projections… Compared to previous editions, the section this year boasts the most dazzling lineup of artists and the richest array of art forms.
The Local Curatorial Project have expanded from four to six entries compared to the previous edition and the shortlisted teams will automatically be qualified for the Preliminary Selection for the “International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia – Collateral Event from Macao, China.” This not only reflects the Macao SAR Government’s strategic vision of “fostering talent through exhibitions” but also opens a pathway for “incubating locally while connecting the world,” facilitating the dialogue between the works from Macao and the global context.
There is an open call for proposals for the Collateral Exhibitions starting this year. This is aimed at gathering the creative power from all sectors of local society and enriching industrial diversity, with a focus on the landscapes of art education and commercial galleries.
Overall, Art Macao 2025 achieves breakthroughs in several aspects: further supporting local works while bringing together more masterpieces created by world-acclaimed artists; reaching out to the community and World Heritage buildings while also encouraging cultural collaborations in East Asia; and devising an innovative mechanism to interface with the international stage. As such, this biennale established in recent years is growing in strength and explorative spirit, injecting powerful momentum into Macao’s development toward “One Base.”
I hereby extend my great respect to chief curator Feng Boyi, co-curators Liu Gang and Wu Wei, participating artists from around the globe, and all our partners. In the summer and autumn of 2025, let us wield the arts to paint a chapter of our times together in Macao, a city embodying the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures.
Leong Wai Man
President of Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government