Works on view at Phillips Hong Kong. Left to right: Chiharu Shiota, Endless Line, 2023. Takashi Murakami, Flowers of Hope, 2019. Antony Gormley, SUBJECT 1 (MEME) II, 2018. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
In the upcoming New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong Auction, Phillips presents a selection of works from today’s most innovative artists. From Ayako Rokkaku’s whimsical, finger-painted dreamscapes to Antony Gormley’s introspective geometric forms, the collection invites viewers to explore the transformative power of touch, material, and imagination. Everyday objects, childhood memories, and architectural landscapes are reimagined, becoming vessels for deeply emotive, thought-provoking works of art.
Ayako Rokkaku, Untitled (Wooden House), 2019. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Ayako Rokkaku’s Untitled (Wooden House) is the only hand-painted installation created live during her 2019 exhibition at Museum Jan in Amstelveen, Netherlands. This unique, three-dimensional work encapsulates Rokkaku’s whimsical style, inviting viewers into her immersive, dream-like world. The wooden structure, covered entirely in her signature swirling, finger-painted patterns, blurs the lines between an art object and an interactive playground, creating a space that is both fantastical and tangible.
The piece evokes a sense of wonder and nostalgia, transporting viewers back to the uninhibited creativity of childhood. Playful, spontaneous patterns reflect the freedom of imagination, sparking joy and curiosity. By transforming a simple wooden structure into an enchanting, interactive space, Rokkaku creates a bridge between art and personal memory, offering a heartfelt and carefree exploration of childhood innocence.
When I’m painting, I try to get in touch with the way I felt as a child—to get back to my starting point.
—Ayako Rokkaku
Born in 1982 in Chiba, Japan, Ayako Rokkaku is celebrated for her groundbreaking technique of applying paint directly with her hands, forgoing traditional brushes in favor of a tactile, intimate approach. This method lends a sense of immediacy and energy to her work, with each swirl and mark reflecting the spontaneity of her creative process. In Untitled (Wooden House), the architectural elements — peaked roof, railings, and interior spaces — become a dynamic canvas for her vibrant palette and gestural strokes.
Ayako Rokkaku, Untitled (ARP09-015), 2009. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Similarly, in Untitled (ARP09-015), Rokkaku’s tactile finger-painting style breathes movement and energy into the figure of a girl with balloons. Eyes wide with curiosity, the girl’s invites the viewer to share her sense of wonder. The swirling colours and spontaneous composition evoke a childlike dream where the boundaries of reality are joyfully suspended. Through her direct interaction with paint and canvas, Rokkaku captures the essence of freedom and playfulness. The girl riding on the elephant becomes a symbol of unbridled imagination, encouraging the viewers to enter a space where innocence and colour transcend form.
Rokkaku gained international recognition after winning the Akio Goto Prize at the 9th Geisai art fair in 2006. Her popularity soared following a sell-out exhibition at Phillips Hong Kong in 2018, and her works are now part of prestigious collections, such as the Powerlong Art Museum and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art.
Yoshitomo Nara, Untitled, 2002. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Yoshitomo Nara, one of Japan’s most renowned contemporary artists, blends the kawaii aesthetic with dark humor and a touch of rebelliousness in his work. Known for his prolific use of diverse mediums, Nara’s drawings on paper are particularly playful and spontaneous, often created on scraps of notebooks or found posters. These drawings capture fragments of his daily emotions and impressions, serving as intimate reflections of his creative spirit and artistic process.
Executed in 2002, this piece features Nara’s iconic big-headed girl — a recurring motif seen as his artistic “self-portrait.” The girl’s piercing almond-shaped eyes and subtle expression combine childlike innocence with a sense of defiance, embodying Nara’s concern for the vulnerable and rebellious in an adult world. This playful yet mischievous counterbalance is a hallmark of Nara’s style, which gained widespread recognition in the early 2000s.
Influenced by his love for rock music, Nara’s drawings flow freely like “ghosts of rusty melodies,” shaped by the global countercultural movement of the 1960s. His big-headed girl, like Nara himself, seeks connection beyond geographical boundaries, resonating with a shared sense of experience and emotion across the world. As the artist explains, music allowed him to imagine a child, like himself, in another part of the world, listening and feeling the same way. This universal appeal continues to captivate audiences worldwide.
Issy Wood, Unsprung, 2020. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Unsprung reveals rich textures and surfaces — all enveloped in a muted and obscure colour palette. Drawing on a visual history of fetishism, Wood critiques the intangible forces of desire, possession, and power through the lens of physical property accumulation. The interplay of figurative and abstract elements creates a haunting, dreamlike atmosphere, where objects lose their familiar meanings and take on deeper, more elusive significance.
The vignette shows two small, smiling lamb figurines rest against the gleaming black leather seat of an automobile. The title, Unsprung — referring to the relaxed state of the leather seats, no longer under tension — suggests a quiet, domestic moment. Yet, this seemingly serene scene resonates with deeper undertones.
If I had to find one overarching theme, it would probably be how terrifying desire is.
—Issy Wood
London-based American artist Issy Wood has proactively wielded an oeuvre that interweaves painting, music, and writing to explore the theme of desire. Often described as a “medieval millennial,” Wood has combined a touch of classical solemnity with an attitude of contemporary cynicism, through which she has developed a highly stylised mannerism of the uncanny to approach the complex floods of desire hidden in everyday banality.
Cui Jie, China Telecom Building 3, 2019. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
An outstanding example of her skyscraper studies, Cui Jie’s China Telecom Building 3 explores the intersections of architecture, urbanization, and memory through her distinctive visual style. At its core is the Pudong International Information Port in Cui's native Shanghai — its details faithfully rendered but with one side bathed in an impossible silver sheen, evoking the retro-futuristic fantasies of the Space Age. This effect is achieved through stenciled black spray paint, which leaves a matrix-like grid in its wake. The painting’s vague architectural outlines and suspended shapes enhance the sense that it was digitally rendered, only to “crash.” As the childlike swathes of paint on the sides show, Cui executed this work completely by hand.
The blend of sharp geometric forms with painterly gestures invites viewers to reflect on the constant transformation of urban environments. Cui’s architectural depictions become metaphors for societal shifts, where the solidity of buildings contrasts with the fluidity of change. Her work transcends cityscape depictions, becoming a meditative exploration of modernity’s impact on human experience.
Born in 1983 and a graduate of the prestigious China Academy of Art, Cui is a beacon of innovation in the contemporary Chinese art scene. Her work has appeared in exhibitions at the Centre Pompidou-Metz, X Museum in Beijing, and Asia Society in New York, and has been collected by Centre Pompidou and the Rubell Family Collection in Miami.
Edgar Plans, Baudelaire, 2021. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Edgar Plans’ Baudelaire is a captivating homage to the 19th-century French poet Charles Baudelaire, who is renowned for his evocative poetry and critical reflections on modernity. In this work, Plans reimagines Baudelaire through his signature whimsical style, depicting the poet as a cartoon-like figure with disproportionately large eyes and head.
The hero-like character, with a “B” emblazoned on his chest, holds a flower, referencing Baudelaire’s famous work Les Fleurs du mal (The Flowers of Evil). In a pitch-dark setting, the figure is the only one bathed in light, symbolizing his child-like candor amidst a shadowy world. As he gazes at the Flower of Evil with a mix of confusion and curiosity, the dark world that birthed it remains concealed in the shadows.
Skyler Chen, Honey, Would You Set the Table?, 2021. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Honey, Would You Set the Table? is a striking piece that captures the unspoken tension between intimacy and solitude. Chen explores the contrast between private desires and public facades through the juxtaposition of an erotic book with fresh fruit and blossoms. Though the man and woman sit in close physical proximity, their averted gazes highlight an emotional distance, underscoring themes of disconnection. The warm, earthy tones and soft shadows evoke a sense of nostalgia, while the use of light adds introspective depth. Chen's nuanced exploration of queer identity is woven throughout, inviting viewers to reflect on the complexities of identity, desire, and the universal feeling of aloneness present in the scene.
In this lot, Chen masterfully intertwines classical elements with contemporary scenes, creating an image that straddles the line between familiarity and enigma. While the figures are dressed in modern attire, the colour palette, composition, and subject matter evoke the aesthetic of classical 18th-century masterworks. Each object is meticulously placed, imbued with symbolic meaning that reveals the deeper, inner worlds of the figures.
Born in 1982 in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, Skyler Chen graduated with a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Utah in 2006. Currently based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Chen has exhibited widely, including recent solo shows at Massimo de Carlo Gallery in London (2024) and Paris (2023), as well as group exhibitions in Beijing and Singapore. His work continues to be showcased across prominent international galleries.
Takashi Murakami, Flowers of Hope, 2019. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Takashi Murakami’s Flower of Hope is a radiant testament to the power of art to inspire joy and resilience. Drawing from the kawaii aesthetic deeply embedded in Japanese culture, Murakami transforms the canvas into a vibrant celebration of life, innovation, and optimism. His use of flat, symmetrical composition and a shimmering platinum leaf background showcases his mastery of the Superflat technique, while the rainbow-coloured flowers radiate pure happiness. This blend of traditional Nihonga and contemporary pop culture highlights the enduring power of art to heal and uplift.
We want to see the newest things. That is because we want to see the future, even if only momentarily. It is the moment in which, even if we don’t completely understand what we have glimpsed, we are nonetheless touched by it. This is what we have come to call art.
—Takashi Murakami
Born in Tokyo in 1962, Murakami studied Nihonga at the Tokyo University of the Arts and later became the leading figure of the Superflat movement, which merges traditional Japanese painting with elements of pop culture. His work regularly bridges art, fashion, and design through collaborations with brands like Supreme, Uniqlo, Crocs, and Casio. Murakami’s works are held in prestigious public collections, including the MoMA in New York, the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, and M+ in Hong Kong.
Josh Sperling, Double Bubble M, 2020. New Now: Modern & Contemporary Art Hong Kong.
Josh Sperling’s Double Bubble M is a vibrant exploration of form and colour, blending the traditions of minimalism and pop art into a dynamic sculptural painting. The grid of circular forms, rendered in vivid pink hues, seems to pulsate with life, inviting viewers into a playful interaction with space and dimension. Sperling’s precise, glossy surfaces and the rhythmic flow of his patterns transform simple geometric forms into a celebration of colour and movement. His ability to distill joy from minimalism demonstrates the alchemical nature of his practice, where simplicity gives rise to exuberant sensory experiences.
The internationally acclaimed American artist has exhibited worldwide. His works have been collected by prestigious collections, including the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris, Arsenal Contemporary, Montreal, and Longlati Foundation, Hong Kong.
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