Diary
The Radar: Yan Du
Yan Du at her house in London with Snowy, August 2023. Photo: Lee Whittaker. Courtesy Y.D.C.
In this edition of The Radar—Ursula’s uncommon cultural recommendations from our friends and colleagues around the world—the London-based arts philanthropist and collector Yan Du—founder of the Asymmetry Art Foundation and YDP, a non-profit project space in London—shares a few of her insider recommendations for art and other cultural destinations in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area ahead of Art Basel Hong Kong 2026.
Everyone appreciates the role that Hong Kong performs as a bridge between East and West; in recent years it’s become a thriving hub where gallerists and curators have achieved great things. Having been based in Hong Kong for more than a decade and more recently in London for several years, I feel as if both are like second homes—increasingly lively, inclusive and open minded; each affording the enjoyments of a flexible international lifestyle. The in-between nature of both cities resonates with many people like myself, and it has shaped my way of thinking. A certain kind of multiplicity and diversity becomes possible through understanding and exchange, and I’ve always seen art as a powerful means for understanding. In 2019, I established the Asymmetry Art Foundation to support cultural dialogue through curatorial research and knowledge production from the Sinophone world and beyond. Last year, I founded YDP, a non-profit project space in London that advocates for Asian and Asian-diasporic artists—a space I hope they see as a kind of home, a place where they can feel safe to unleash their creativity and a platform to further promote dialogue and exchange. Here are a few more of my favorite places for art and culture in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area.
Asia Art Archive. Photo: Moving Image Studio
Asia Art Archive (Sheung Wan, Hong Kong)
This archive is an unbelievable resource dedicated to recent art from Asia; part research center, part public library, part residency, its ever-growing collection of documents, publications, ephemera and oral histories has always been so inspiring and has certainly informed my work in creating Asymmetry and YDP. The archive provides critical infrastructure that helps artist and others in the art world to look a little deeper. At a time when commitment to long-term research and open access can be contested, it’s a leading light in the region!
Videotage (North Point, Hong Kong)
Founded in 1986, Videotage is one of Asia’s longest-running media art organizations, a cornerstone for time-based and experimental media practices in the region. It will often support really interesting artists whose work sometimes sits outside commercial circuits. As digital and immersive practices become globally fashionable, Videotage’s long-term cultivation of media art offers depth rather than trendiness, grounding technological experimentation in discourse and continuity.
Current Plans (various locations, Hong Kong)
More a platform than a gallery, Current Plans captures the energy of a younger generation of practitioners who are reshaping the cultural field from the ground up. It hosts exhibitions, performances, screenings and informal gatherings that blur art with social life. Its programming feels fluid and relational—a reminder that artistic communities are built as much through shared time as through formal display.
CHAT (Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile), Hong Kong. Courtesy CHAT
Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile (The Mills, Tsuen Wan)
Located in a former cotton mill, this center brings the history of Hong Kong’s textile industry together with contemporary art and design. Its exhibitions and programs combine industrial memory, material culture and the histories of migration and labor, often pairing archival research with new commissions.
A nod across the Bay: Shenzhen’s institutional shift
Across the border, Shenzhen is entering a significant institutional moment. The appointment of Pi Li and Robin Peckham to major new leadership positions signals a generational recalibration for museum culture in the Greater Bay Area. These shifts suggest a rethinking of how contemporary art institutions in southern China position themselves internationally, while remaining locally grounded. They demonstrate that the Greater Bay Area is no longer just an economic project but is also becoming a cultural one. The conversations unfolding in Shenzhen will shape how the region imagines its future artistic identity.
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Yan Du is a London-based arts philanthropist and collector from China. For over fifteen years, Yan has been supporting artists and institutions through her philanthropic work. Her personal collection, YDC, includes a broad range of works than span the arc of the twentieth century to present.