Shunga: Charity Exhibition Featuring Works by Mizuki Nishiyama

Description

MW, the lifestyle brand by actor Michael Wong, presents Shunga, Mizuki Nishiyama’s first solo exhibition in Hong Kong at Whitestone Gallery. A portion of proceeds from the exhibition sales will go towards Operation Smile, an international medical charity, to fund free, safe and high-quality surgeries for children with cleft conditions in developing countries.

Shunga is a traditional Japanese form of erotic art on ink paintings or woodblock prints produced mainly in the Edo period (1600-1868). Literally meaning “spring pictures,” shunga destigmatised sex and celebrated intimacy as beautiful and natural.

As an artist of mixed Japanese, Hong Kong, and Italian heritage, Nishiyama bridges her Japanese background with concepts such as modern Orientalism to desexualise lust. Both as an Asian artist and Asian woman, Nishiyama hopes to elevate her sense of identity and humanity through her works.

In this exhibition, Nishiyama also presents her three paintings dedicated to Operation Smile – “Bloom,” “Nurture,” and “Paths” (all 2020). Inspired by nature and transformation, she approaches this series with themes of hope, evolution, and life.