Hong Kong artist dismayed as works stolen hours before exhibition due to open

A Hong Kong artist, Keith Lam, expressed his dismay after five styrofoam sculptures he created were stolen hours before a major new exhibition was set to open. The theft occurred at Hong Kong City Hall in Central, leaving the pieces missing from the eight-piece work, One Day Social Sculpture. The exhibition, part of the Microwave International New Media Arts Festival 2026, was scheduled to open on Saturday and run until November 8.

The missing sculptures, insured for HK$160,000, were created using real-time online data, making them irreplaceable. Lam, currently an artist-in-residence in South Korea, emphasized the significance of the work, which he began in 2013 after finding his artistic direction again. He stated that the stolen sculptures, part of the larger Microwave exhibition, explored the intersection of technology, data, and intangible realities.

Police are investigating the theft and coordinating with City Hall management to review CCTV footage in an attempt to trace the missing items. The incident, police sources suggest, appears to be non-political, with no financial motivation evident.