Designer who inspired Hong Kong art installation addresses criticism of exhibition organizers

The artist who inspired an inflatable installation of his work in Hong Kong has backtracked on his criticism of the event’s organizers, days after demanding the “very ugly” pieces be removed.

In a statement released Monday and shared by “Inflatable Wonders” organizer Central Venue Management (CVM), Armenian artist Joann said she had granted permission for the installation to be created and was not involved in “any aspect” of its execution.

“The organizers were inspired by my work on artificial intelligence and were not obliged to reproduce my creations exactly,” she said. “I am not participating in this exhibition, except by granting permission to use my concept.”

The exhibition features five large-scale inflatable replicas of famous landmarks inspired by works created using artificial intelligence (AI) by Joann, who goes by the handle @joooo.ann on social media.

But the design was derided online over the weekend, with some users comparing the installations to “tombstones”, prompting Joann to issue a statement saying she had not received anything for approval from the organisers and wanted the “very ugly” pieces removed.

In Monday’s statement, Joann said that transforming his AI designs into physical installations involved “significant challenges” and that variations from his original concepts were “to be expected.”

She added that the images of the exhibition she had received from various media sources were of “low quality,” making it difficult to accurately assess what the exhibition would look like.

In a statement, the CVM said it “regrets the disputes regarding the creation” of the facility.

The installation, part of “SummerFest@Central,” includes inflatable replicas of the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy, the Arc de Triomphe in France and representations of the Moai statues of Easter Island in Chile.

The CVM said about 12,000 people visited the facilities during the first three days of the event, which runs from July 5 to August 11.

The organizer was appointed by the government, through a public tender since 2016, to exclusively operate and manage the central waterfront event space.

It has hosted a series of large-scale events including Art Central 2023 and 2024 sponsored by the Mega Cultural and Arts Events Fund, the Clockenflap music festival and the Formula E motorsport championship.

Joann is known for her collaborations with luxury brands such as Gucci, Versace, Marc Jacobs, Valentino and BMW.