Budding Chinese artist Ren Zhe’s steel sculptures based on novelist Jin Yong’s characters to go on display during Art Basel
- Ren Zhe, who was recently granted a visa under Hong Kong’s Top Talent Pass Scheme, will display some 30 stainless-steel sculptures during Art Basel week next March
- One of his pieces sold for HK$2.52 million (US$321,000) at Sotheby’s Modern Art Evening Sale in Hong Kong in 2021
Some 30 stainless-steel sculptures of characters created by martial arts novelist Jin Yong, known as the JRR Tolkien of Chinese literature, will be displayed at the same time as Art Basel in Hong Kong, which is promoting itself as an art-collection hub for wealthy investors.
Beijing-born Ren, 40, who graduated from the Tsinghua University’s Academy of Fine Arts Sculpture Department with bachelor’s and master’s degrees, is best known for his stainless-steel warrior sculptures. His work “Infinite Spirit of Allegiance” fetched HK$2.52 million (US$321,000) at Sotheby’s Modern Art Evening Sale in Hong Kong in 2021.
“The sculptures include well-known characters such as Yang Guo and Xiaolongnu from The Return of the Condor Heroes,” said Ren, who started creating these pieces in 2020.
Hong Kong is promoting itself as a family office hub by attracting wealthy families to set up offices in the city to manage their investments ranging from financial products to arts and other assets. The government organised a high-level summit, Wealth for Good on March 24, which was attended by more than 400 participants from more than 100 of the world’s leading family decision makers, as well as senior family office executives.
