Myths and Monsters: The Art of Fantasy in Asia explores the role of fantasy in the evolution of Asian visual culture and its global impacts. Spanning from the nineteenth to twenty-first centuries, the exhibition presents fantasy as a potent creative tool for artists to respond to shifting sociopolitical conditions. Through imaginative stories, characters, and worlds, these artists confront complex realities that resonate with contemporary experiences. This groundbreaking exhibition reveals the links between a wide range of genres and styles, highlighting historical connections that have rarely been explored.

Unfolding across four chapters, the exhibition begins with pre-modern traditions such as Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints, Chinese shadow puppetry, and Tibetan Buddhist scrolls. These traditions helped establish fantasy as a foundational element of Asian visual culture. Chapters two and three trace major twentieth-century developments, including the spread of Surrealism through Asia and the post-war emergence of Japanese manga and anime. The final chapter presents the explosion of fantastical anime aesthetics in art, design, architecture, film, fashion, video games, and digital culture around the world that continues to the present day. It shows how these creative forms move fluidly across disciplines and regions in the twenty-first century.

Sponsor’s Message

As Lead Sponsor of Myths and Monsters: The Art of Fantasy in Asia, HSBC continues with the vision to connect Hong Kong with the world, and the world to Hong Kong. The sponsorship represents the bank’s continued support for art and culture and the Hong Kong community—opening up contemporary visual culture, through the lens of Hong Kong, to the rest of the world.