Hidden Space, art space in a Hong Kong industrial building, gives emerging artists room to experiment

Inspired by the return of Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty, Kay Beadman, an artist born in the city but raised in the UK, returned and soon delved into art

Fast forward 16 years and she put all the money she had into an industrial space she now runs with two fellow artists, where they give young artists a showcase

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Artist-run art space Hidden Space in Kwai Hing is hosting Hong Kong artist Sami Yip’s exhibition “Sunrise. Shift Your Weight” until May 5, 2024. Its co-founder tells us about its history and her own, and its role. Photo: courtesy of Hidden Space

Kate Whitehead

Published: 11:15am, 9 Apr 2024

Hidden Space, an independent artist-run space founded by three Hong Kong artists in 2017, lives up to its name.

It is tucked away in an industrial building in Kwai Hing, Tsuen Wan, in the New Territories, and co-founder Kay Mei-ling Beadman warns that the entrance is tricky to find and gives me her number. But there is no need to call. Hidden it may be, but after seven years in the building, it is no secret.

Without my even asking for directions, first a delivery worker and then a young clerk point out a lift at the back of a loading bay. The lift grinds its way up to the 16th floor and the doors shudder open. Unit 6 is halfway down a dimly lit corridor.

Beadman had rented a small studio in Sai Ying Pun on Hong Kong Island for four years before she decided to get a place of her own. In 2015, when her landlord said he planned to raise the rent by 80 per cent ahead of the opening Sai Ying Pun station on the MTR Island Line’s western extension, she remortgaged her flat and sank everything she had into the 1,400 sq ft industrial space in Kwai Hing.

Part of emerging Hong Kong artists Sami Yip’s exhibition “Sunrise. Shift Your Weight” at Hidden Space in Kwai Hing. Photo: courtesy of Hidden Space

Beadman swings open the door – she has a big smile, round glasses and sounds very English – and ushers me into Hidden Space. A 300 sq ft exhibition area houses a solo show by Hong Kong artist Sami Yip, the sixth recipient of the annual Hidden Space award.

Called “Sunrise. Shift Your Weight”, the exhibition consists of a set of videos featuring a physically unimpressive man looking dejected and exhausted as he tries and fails to complete a range of tasks at home.