Tai Kwun | Tai Kwun Contemporary debuts Maeve Brennan’s inaugural exhibition in Asia, Records

Description

Tai Kwun Contemporary is pleased to present Maeve Brennan: Records, the artist’s inaugural solo exhibition in Asia, spanning moving image, sculpture, works on paper, and printed matter. Maeve Brennan (b. 1990) is a cinematic storyteller and filmmaker whose practice investigates material histories, underground economics, and ecological issues. Adopting a unique approach that blends forensic investigation with poetic tales drawn from real-life stories, Brennan has quickly established herself as one of the most compelling voices in contemporary documentary filmmaking. Through deep research and long-term collaboration, the exhibition uncovers the hidden world of stolen antiques, exposing the networks that shape our cultural past and present.

Running from 21 March to 8 June 2025 at the JC Contemporary, Records features ongoing projects from the artist, with three new works commissioned by Tai Kwun Contemporary. Presented alongside solo exhibitions Alicja Kwade: Pretopia and Hu Xiaoyuan: Veering, Records is part of Tai Kwun’s Breakthrough series that explores materiality and story-telling through diverse, inventive approaches. This triptych of shows highlights Tai Kwun’s dedication to championing contemporary art and deepening the public’s understanding of emerging artistic positions.

The exhibition title Records speaks to the documentation, and preservation, of often-overlooked narratives surrounding places and objects. Resembling documentaries in their style, Brennan’s films draw the audience in with sweeping imagery and captivating characters. In her material practice, which the artist has described as “artefacts of her research enquiry,” she reconfigures elements of her research for different modes of storytelling. Brennan’s most recent film, Siticulosa (2025), co-commissioned by Tai Kwun, delves into the origins of the looted antiquities featured in her earlier film An Excavation (2022), tracing them back to the Puglia region of Southern Italy. Taking audiences on a one-of-a-kind journey, what begins as an examination of the impact of illicit archaeological excavations on Puglia’s landscape and communities becomes a rich and nuanced study of the area, extending beyond archaeology, and ultimately offering a breadth of local knowledge and intimate understanding of the land.

From the hills of rural Italy to the dark recesses of museum storage rooms, scrapyards, and ancient tombs, Brennan's interest in material pasts and forms of repair has led her to the places alternative narratives emerge. For instance, in the piece Box 29_01 (2022), the artist reproduces a Polaroid discovered alongside artefacts looted by Italian tomb raiders. This interconnectedness with spaces where marginalised histories appear resonates powerfully with Tai Kwun’s complex heritage, which - in its capacity as a cultural hub - is constantly under examination and reinterpretation. On a larger scale, Hong Kong's longstanding role as a global centre of trade and exchange also provides a fitting context for Brennan's exploration of cultural ownership and contested historical accounts, prompting audiences to consider the social and political implications embedded within objects and their surroundings.

Despite grappling with vast archives and intricate systems, much of Brennan’s work centres on interpersonal relationships and encounters that span eras. This particular focus is mirrored in her close partnerships with experts such as archaeologists, geologists, and biologists, some of whom become pivotal characters in her works. In The Goods (2018 –), a multi-disciplinary project examining the international trade in looted antiquities, the artist continues her long-term collaborations with forensic archaeologist Dr Christos Tsirogiannis. Taking Brennan’s investigation from Lebanon to London and across Europe, The Goods gives a sense of the largely invisible economy of the illegal antiquities market, which is one of the most profitable, after weapons and drug trafficking. Through Brennan’s observations, the series uncovers the entangled backstories of recovered ancient objects. These narratives unravel the complex histories of artifacts violently stripped from their contexts by looters, while silently alluding to the irretrievable stories lost in the process. By doing so, The Goods sparks urgent conversations about ownership, restitution, and the ethics of preservation, challenging viewers to reconsider the moral implications of cultural heritage and its displacement.

Tiffany Leung, Records Curator, said, “Maeve Brennan understands the world through our interconnectedness, tracing the relationships between objects, animals, people, and places across time. Forensic, yet expressive, her method involves working slowly and collaboratively with individuals who possess diverse forms of knowledge, offering a multi-faceted perspective on her subjects.”

Pi Li, Head of Art at Tai Kwun, said, "We are delighted to host the works of three female artists - Maeve Brennan, Alicja Kwade, and Hu Xiaoyuan - as part of our Breakthrough series at Tai Kwun. Launching Records during Hong Kong's art month in March connects the exhibition to worldwide discussions on cultural restitution and historical accountability. At a time when there is increasing awareness of the relationships between colonialism and the circumstances of museum collections, Brennan's work sheds light on forms of exile and repatriation that affect communities globally."

Ying Kwok, Senior Curator at Tai Kwun, said, “Maeve Brennan has a way of uncovering the hidden economies behind cultural artefacts—the networks of trade, loss, and recovery that usually go unseen. She works like an archaeologist, not just tracing the past but digging into the systems and people that shape how objects move through the world. Showing Records at Tai Kwun feels especially meaningful, right here on Hollywood Road, where generations of antique shops have witnessed the shifting values and stories attached to objects. In a city built on circulation and exchange, Brennan’s work asks us to look closer at what gets passed down, what disappears, and who gets to decide an object’s fate.”

Education & Public Programmes

Tai Kwun Contemporary will host a variety of public programmes and educational events exploring the exhibition's themes. These include Teacher's Morning and Teacher's Workshop sessions, and Family Day at Tai Kwun Contemporary, which explore the artist's use of materials and narrative. Guided Tour: Who's Next? will provide docent-led tours delving into the artist's creative process, techniques, and inspirations. The Hi! & Seek Corner, an open space on the 2nd floor, will be open as usual for visitor dialogue, exploration, and interactive experiences related to the exhibition.