HONG KONG
Official Country Name HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
Languages CANTONESE, ENGLISH, MANDARIN
Population 7,213,338
Median Age 44.8
GDP Per Capita US $61,500
Source: CIA World Factbook
Total Value of Art Exported (UN Comtrade Database 2018) US $1,528,327,228
Arts Funding (Arts and Culture) US $614,157,000
Art Programs (University Level) 8
Student Enrollment 2,371
Source: Home Affairs Bureau, AAP (non-official)
Museums Exhibiting Contemporary Art 7
Contemporary Art Galleries (Commercial) 84
Contemporary Art Spaces (Nonprofit) 46
Art Foundations (NGO + Private) 31
Source: AAP (non-official)
Acknowledgments: Vincent Mak, Winnie Cheung, Lilian Chan, General Office of Lingnan University, School of Creative Media at City University of Hong Kong, Jess Fung
Through the second half of 2019, protests raged on the streets of Hong Kong. What began in June as demonstrations against a bill that would allow the extradition of alleged criminals to mainland China—a policy that many feared would be abused by the Chinese government—has since morphed into an ongoing movement driven by five core demands. The first of these, the legal withdrawal of the bill, was granted in October. However, pro-democracy protests continued, and grew increasingly confrontational as demonstrators and police adopted more aggressive tactics. According to police figures, as of December 16, 6,121 people have been arrested for alleged crimes related to the protests, including vandalism and the possession of weapons, while authorities have repeatedly denied accusations that police have used excessive force. On November 24, nearly 80 percent of the population voted in local district council elections with pan-democrats winning 17 out of 18 districts.
Amid such turmoil, Hong Kong’s art scene carried on, though a small number of events were canceled or postponed. Hong Kong’s government-backed arts
