Acudus Aranyian Solo Exhibition at Art and Cultural Outreach Staircase, September 13 – October 13, 2019. QRL Representative: Beatrix Pang. Acudus Aranyian is a Taiwanese indigenous Paiwan person. Born in 1996 in the Danlin tribe in Pingtung County, he moved to Taoyuan at the age of three when his family relocated for his father’s work. After moving to Tamsui to study at university, he began using his family’s old film camera to record his life. Over time, the rolls of film have chronicled his daily depression, his lust and emotions, the queer and techno cultures of Taipei, and political movements centered in Qingdao East Road.
Mini QRL display with ZINE COOP at art book in China, November 2 – 4, 2018. Founded in 2015, abC as the first major art book fair in China, dedicated to promote local artist’s books and independent publications in China as well as introduce excellent global publishers and institutions to establish a profound multilateral dialogue.
This QRL_Corner event at Tai Kwun Contemporary, hosted by Kaitlin Chan (Queer Reads Library) and Kary Kwok, will discuss photography as a form of archiving life, with a particular focus on queer storytellers. Drawing from photography publications inspired by Myth Makers and including works by Oscar Chik, Acúdus Aranyian, Ho Tam, Mimi Wong, and Kary Kwok, this casual session will provide a forum for visitors to discuss both the creating of photos and the appreciation of them as a way of seeing ourselves and each other.
We heard Hong Kong poet Mary Jean Chan read from her book Flèche (2019, Faber & Faber) followed by discussion and Q&A on queerness, diaspora and the art of poetry. The intimate online session took place on November 20, 2020.
In collaboration with Fine Arts Reading Room at Concordia University, QRL hosted a a free zine organizing and tidying workshop on May 27th. We introduced some simple and fun techniques for organizing and storing zine and book collections. Watch the event recording here.
QRL at Black Book Assembly, tabling and participating in a discussion Sharing Space: On Independent Publishing, Libraries and Archives with wares and indisczinepartij, April 27 – 28, 2019.
QRL at Booked, Hong Kong’s first international art book fair organized by Tai Kwun Contemporary, January 11 – 13, 2019. As a new, large-scale art book fair in Asia, “Booked” underscores Tai Kwun Contemporary’s dedication to presenting contemporary art programmes in support of the expanding art ecology in Hong Kong. This includes providing a platform for local, regional, and international creative practitioners who use books as a medium of artistic expression to share their work.
In this special display at CHAT Reads, QRL responds to CHAT’s seasonal exhibition Interweaving Poetic Code with reading materials that reflect on the central themes of care, community, and inclusivity. The exhibition and reading corner are free-entry and on view until July 18, 2021.
QRL at CultureFest organized by Plug Magazine, October 6 – 7, 2018. CultureFest was a 2-day event to showcase local LGBT+ artists and highlight underrepresented communities in Hong Kong. There were workshops, performances, an exhibition and a marketplace hosted all together as a headlining event of Pink Season 粉紅天, Asia’s largest LGBT+ festival. QRL hosted a pop-up library and collage zine-making workshop.
QRL at Printed Matter’s LA Art Book Fair, August 10-13, 2023 at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA. QRL is part of the Friendly Fire program this year alongside other social justice organizations and politically-minded artist publishers. Purchase tickets or register for free entry here.
QRL at Migrants’ Pride, with artist/writer El Lee, November 18, 2018.
QRL at Tai Kok Tsui Zine Fest, Bedroom, December 6, 2018. TKT Zine Fest (TKTZF) springs from the heart of Hong Kong’s DIY and print/zine art communities, as a reaction to the hyper commercialisation of art in the city. In the midst of the high-speed art industry, nobody has bothered to look underneath the glossy surface, where groups of local creatives have been forming, each member doing their respective part by laying the groundworks for a much larger network of makers/presses/designers/artists.
