M+ and Collecting for the Future in Hong Kong

A museum collection is often described as an institution’s backbone – it gives the museum structure and support and also allows for flexibility and movement. A collection is also synonymous with a museum’s identity – it defines the direction of curatorial programming and forms the wellspring of all future ideas and learning. How then, does a museum – in this case a museum of 20 th and 21 st century visual culture – go about building its collection from scratch? Where does one begin and what are the key considerations in terms of format, time period, and geographical scope? How can we see the process of collecting as a form of knowledge building? This lecture reflects on my involvement in building the first publicly funded, Asian-centered contemporary art collection in Asia – the M+ collection. I will discuss the landing of the Sigg Collection, a formidable repository of four decades of Chinese contemporary art, the thinking behind the term ‘visual culture’, and why it matters to build a physical collection of art in the first place.

Pauline J. Yao is an independent curator and writer based in Hong Kong. From 2017 to 2024 she was Lead Curator, Visual Art, at M+. Since joining the M+ curatorial team in 2012, Yao played an integral role in building the museum’s collection and acquiring works of art from East Asia, Southeast Asia and internationally. She curated the first display of the visual art collection exhibition individuals, Networks, Expressions and organized Antony Gormley: Asian Field, both in 2021. Other M+ exhibitions include In Search of Southeast Asia through the M+ Collections (with Shirley Surya, 2018) and Five Artists: Sites Encountered (2019), both presented at the M+ Pavilion. Yao is a regular contributor to Artforum International and her writings on contemporary Asian art have appeared in numerous catalogues, online publications, and edited volumes.