BMW Art Journey at Art Basel in Hong Kong 2017. Premiere of Abigail Reynolds’s project ‘The Ruins of Time: Lost Libraries of the Silk Road’. Next BMW Art Journey shortlist to be announced.

Hong Kong. BMW is pleased to unveil an installation of work made in response to the epic journey undertaken by British artist Abigail Reynolds (represented by Rokeby, London), winner of the third BMW Art Journey in 2016. ‘The Ruins of Time: Lost Libraries of the Silk Road’ will be showcased at the BMW Lounge of Art Basel in Hong Kong 2017 and will comprise of a body of work completed by Reynolds in response to her findings along the Silk Road.

‘The Ruins of Time: Lost Libraries of the Silk Road’ is a five-month-long exploration into the complex religious and secular narratives of Europe and Asia, for which the artist undertook extensive multi-continental travel to parts of the Silk Road by motorbike. The journey has enabled Reynolds to expand her current interests and working methods by investigating the sites of former libraries she discovered in her research, and documenting what she found at each location.

Reynolds said of the project, “A library is a compendium of knowledge, a group identity. I went to places where all that meaning has been voided, recently or in the distant past. The journey itself was challenging and huge, encompassing three quarters of the globe, traversing multiple cultures, none familiar to me. The journey brought me to the edges of my knowledge, just as the lost libraries brought me to the edge of visuality.”

Reynolds’ artistic practice is closely linked to books and libraries. Having studied English Literature at Oxford University, she frequently draws inspiration from literature and literary figures to imagine places and moments from the past, present and future. This deep connection to libraries and literature led her to conceive of this project involving a series of visits to historic and fabled repositories of books. During the journey, Reynolds traced and documented sixteen sites of libraries lost to political conflicts, natural catastrophes and war. Exploring blanks and voids, she positions the library as a symbol of the impossibility of encompassing all knowledge.

Reynolds’ journey took her to sites dating from 291 BC to 2011 including China, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Egypt, Italy and Iran. Along the way, Reynolds gathered material in various forms including 16mm film, photography, microscope imagery, written text, plans and cataloguing systems. Based on this extensive research, she has created a cluster of objects, structures and moving-image works, the latter being her first attempt to work in this medium. Images, texts and other documents originating from the experience will be included in a book – thus completing a journey that both starts and ends with the institution of the library.

Reynolds is the third BMW Art Journey winner and will be the second artist to unveil her work at Art Basel’s Hong Kong show, following work by previous winner Samson Young, which debuted at the 2016 edition. The international jury selected her unanimously from a shortlist of three artists whose works were exhibited in the Discoveries sector at Art Basel in Hong Kong in 2016. The members of the jury were Richard Armstrong, Director Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Claire Hsu, Director Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong; Matthias Mühling, Director Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich; Bose Krishnamachari, President Kochi-Muziris Biennale, India; and Pauline J. Yao, Curator Visual Art M+, Hong Kong.

The BMW Art Journey is a global collaboration between Art Basel and BMW, created to recognize and support emerging artists worldwide. This unique award is open to artists who are exhibiting in the Discoveries and Positions sectors in the Hong Kong and Miami Beach shows of Art Basel, respectively. Two judging panels comprised of internationally renowned experts meet first to select a shortlist of three artists from the sector, who are then invited to submit proposals for a journey aimed to further develop their ideas and artistic work. The jury reconvenes to choose a winner from the three proposals.

Past winners of the BMW Art Journey include sound and performance artist Samson Young (presented by a.m. Space, Hong Kong at Art Basel's Hong Kong show in 2015), who will also represent Hong Kong at the 2017 Venice Biennale, German video artists Henning Fehr and Philipp Rühr (presented by Galerie Max Mayer, Dusseldorf at Art Basel's Miami Beach show in 2015) as well as Max Hooper Schneider (presented by High Art, Paris at Art Basel's Miami Beach show in 2016).

The next BMW Art Journey shortlist will be announced on March 22 at the BMW Lounge at the 2017 edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong.

BMW has supported Art Basel in Hong Kong from the beginning and is again providing the VIP shuttle service. Furthermore, the 9th BMW Art Car, created by Japanese artist Matazo Kayama in 1990, will be on display at the BMW Lounge at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. BMW is also global partner of the international Art Basel shows in Basel and Miami Beach.

About Abigail Reynolds
Based in Cornwall, UK, Abigail Reynolds read English Literature at Oxford University before pursuing Fine Art at Goldsmiths University. Her interest in books prompts her collages, sculptures, films and printmaking. The ideas driving Reynolds’ work are based on images from reportage photography books, her interest in networks of association and how our sense of time is affected by technology. Represented by ROKEBY (London), she has exhibited at art institutions and galleries in London, Vienna, Los Angeles, Seattle, Berlin and Eindhoven.

About Art Basel
Founded in 1970 by gallerists from Basel, Art Basel today stages the world's premier art shows for Modern and contemporary art, sited in Basel, Miami Beach, and Hong Kong. Defined by its host city and region, each show is unique, which is reflected in its participating galleries, artworks presented, and the content of parallel programming produced in collaboration with local institutions for each edition. Art Basel’s engagement has expanded beyond art fairs through a number of new initiatives. In 2014, Art Basel launched its Crowdfunding Initiative, in collaboration with Kickstarter. This initiative presents jury-selected art projects to potential benefactors, which include Art Basel’s vibrant audience and the Kickstarter community. The initiative has catalyzed much-needed support for outstanding non-commercial art projects worldwide and so far has helped pledge over $1.4 million to creative projects around the world. For Art Basel Cities, launched in 2016, Art Basel is working with selected partner cities to develop vibrant and content-driven programs specific to the individual city. Connecting them to the global art world through Art Basel's expertise and network, Art Basel Cities supports its partners to develop their unique cultural landscape. For further information please visit artbasel.com.

About BMW Group’s Cultural Commitment
For almost 50 years now, the BMW Group has initiated and engaged in over 100 cultural cooperations worldwide. The company places the main focus of its long-term commitment on Modern and contemporary art, classical music and jazz as well as architecture and design. In 1972, three large-scale paintings were created by the artist Gerhard Richter specifically for the foyer of the BMW Group's Munich headquarters. Since then, artists such as Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Daniel Barenboim, Jonas Kaufmann and architect Zaha Hadid have co-operated with BMW. Currently, female artist Cao Fei from China and American John Baldessari are creating the next two vehicles for the BMW Art Car Collection. Besides co-initiatives, such as BMW Tate Live, the BMW Art Journey and the “Opera for All” concerts in Berlin, Munich and London, the company also partners with leading museums and art fairs as well as orchestras and opera houses around the world. The BMW Group takes absolute creative freedom in all its cultural activities – as this initiative is as essential for producing groundbreaking artistic work as it is for major innovations in a successful business.
 
The BMW Group
With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 31 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.
In 2016, the BMW Group sold approximately 2.367 million cars and 145,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2015 was approximately € 9.22 billion on revenues amounting to € 92.18 billion. As of 31 December 2015, the BMW Group had a workforce of 122,244 employees.
The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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