Past Projects - sinokultur

The Hong-Kong born, Basel-based curator Angelika Li and Hong-Kong born, Helsinki-based, artist OSCAR CHAN YIK LONG created the exhibition project To Sleep and Wake Unafraid which will be exhibited in the PF25 space in June 2025 in Basel.

The exhibition draws on the liminal hours before sunrise—moments that stir deep emotional currents in both the conscious and unconscious. For Chan, these early hours resonate with those navigating complexity and difference in their lived realities, while also evoking a universal longing—and right—for safe spaces of self-understanding, healing, and growth.

The exhibition reflects on the relationship between action and identity: how daily gestures and routines shape both body and mind, and how these elements influence and transform one another. Drawing on the philosophy of traditional Chinese medicine, it explores the dynamic interplay between physical and emotional states.

Together with the artist, the curator developed concepts for a new cycle of paintings and installations that will transform the PF25 space.

This exhibition marks the opening chapter of Oscar’s two-part solo exhibition series, unfolding between Switzerland and Lithuania. The second chapter, titled ‘They Always Look from an Imagined Above’, will be presented at the Radvila Palace Art Museum in Vilnius this November — his first solo in a museum.

OSCAR CHAN YIK LONG (b. 1988) is a Hong Kong-born artist with a versatile international practice focused on site-specific painting installations and drawing. Although Oscar often uses ink for immersive painted environments and for drawings, and although he often refers to East Asian mythology in his work, he has very little training in classical Chinese ink painting. His image world and his visual handwriting are his own. 

Angelika Li is a curator from Hong-Kong, based in Basel since 2017. She co-founded in 2018 with Donald Mak PF25 cultural projects, a non-profit organisation which aims to build mutual understanding, to develop an intercultural network and to generate creative energies between Basel and Hong Kong. Angelika is also the founder and curator of the exhibition series 'Homeland in Transit' channelling narratives and imaginations of ‘homeland’ from Hong Kong perspectives: boundaries, roots, diaspora, cultural identity, colonial ideologies, displacement and interweaving them with experiences and voices from other parts of the world. Before moving to Switzerland she was the founding director of MILL6 Foundation in Hong Kong bringing it to ICOM museum status and achieving the Award for Arts Promotion by Hong Kong Arts Development Council in 2016. Angelika holds a BA in History of Art and Architecture from the University of Reading, and an MA in Cultural Management from the Chinese University in Hong Kong. 

The Chinese artist Jiaxi Han is working on the research project Identifying the effect of the modern world on traditional Miao batik techniques.

Her hometown Guizhou, China, is one of the key regions where Miao ethnic minority batik techniques (苗族蜡染) have been passed down for generations. The intricate batik patterns, created using a wax knife (蜡刀), often draw inspiration from the history of the Miao people, nature, daily life, and cultural symbols. In recent years, traditional crafts have gained attention as intangible cultural heritage. Many Miao women, often with limited access to education and modern job opportunities, are revitalizing batik practices, balancing economic independence with cultural preservation.

However, the pressure of modernization and commercialization has influenced both traditional patterns and techniques. While some innovations have emerged, traditional motifs face challenges in being passed on to younger generations. Through this project, Jiaxi aims to document the current state of Miao batik, record the lives and works of artisans, and explore how traditional and modern influences coexist. The final outcome will include video documentation, writing, and batik works—both her own and pieces created by the artisans. The project also seeks to highlight the significance of contemporary batik creations, encouraging appreciation for the ongoing work of Miao women, alongside traditional designs now celebrated in museums or markets for collectors.

Jiaxi Han(1993), of Buyi ethnicity, was born and grew up in southwest China. She received her Bachelor and Master degree in Visual arts at the Academy of Visual Arts in Hong Kong Baptist University and exchanged at Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna in Italy. She also received a Master of Transdisciplinary Studies at Zurich University of the Arts in 2024.