Giraffe Leung

Leung’s early created works of Coins — Memories of Hong Kong features Hong Kong 20 cents, 10 cents and 1 dollar coins. By experiment different methods of blackening the coins with chemical solutions to portray images of iconic Hong Kong scenes, both existing and vanished, Leung speaks not only to his memories of his home city, but also to the inevitable changes in Hong Kong. Leung uses tens of thousands of coins seemingly as a canvas in his works, which become an inseparable part of the visual content. His works responds to the immediacy of social change in Hong Kong and identity.

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"While digital, virtual and other types of transaction are globally replacing the physical currencies, I want to use coins to remind people of the value of things that existed and played a role in our lives" — Giraffe Leung

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The new works in Coins - Memories of Hong Kong respond to broader subject of the changes and situations in Hong Kong over the last two years. Leung’s unique viewpoint lends a fresh perspective to the subject. His improved technique to illustrate images on metal coins allows him to speak even more fluently and in great detail. The familiar view from a window of a typical Hong Kong residential home, and seeing through the eyes of a passenger waiting for the mini bus to fill-up and depart resonates with many Hong Kong people’s everyday life. The sense of loss and longing that the artist felt was communicated in the detail of an ordinary daily scene. These works express emotions at different angles, both individually and collectively.