Hong Merchant Philosophy
Renowned archaeologist and art history lecturer Pia Pierre’s exploration of the remote reaches of the Silk Road, starting in the early 1980s, inspired the creation of Hong Merchant. Housed in a historical 1920s-era French Concession villa, the gallery displays carefully selected and authenticated collector-quality antique Chinese furniture and decorative pieces, alongside China-inspired contemporary art. The idea behind Hong Merchant's artist-in-residence programme is to encourage Chinese and foreign artists to create canvases and conceptual art that fully reflect their experiences in today’s China. The inspired co-mingling of contemporary artwork and antiques throughout the villa shows by example how these mediums can gracefully co-exist.
