Hong Kong's Frog King teams up with Chris Cheung for a hidden digital installation

What do you get when you combine the creative force that is iconic Hong Kong artist Frog King with the equally innovative digital artist Chris Cheung? Nothing less than a world of infinite possibilities – in the form of an immersive digital installation hidden away in a secret bar in Causeway Bay, where only those who are destined to may enter. Jaz Kong reports 

Kwok Mang Ho, better known as Frog King, is one of the most influential figures in Hong Kong’s contemporary art scene, having produced a range of iconic works that span ink, installation and performance art since the 1960s. Now 78, the artist known for his over-the-top outfits and signature “froggy sunglasses” is still actively creating – and inspiring others – to this day. Case in point: a one-of-a-kind immersive digital installation called Perpetual Records, located in a hidden bar named Corsican Stars in Causeway Bay. 

To begin the journey into this secret world, visitors are required to present a token – which is not for sale but only handed out selectively. The idea is that only those who are destined to, or who are willing to ask and seek knowledge, can enter. Perpetual Records occupies a mirrored room that serves as a bridge from the music- inspired bar and restaurant Mercury Recalls to Corsican Stars, and before visitors venture into this deepest part of the universe, they are invited to take a tea-infused shot to cleanse their soul, leave behind the day-to-day and empty their mind in order to allow it to be refilled with wisdom. 

Perpetual Records is not only an exploration into the world of Frog King but a unique collaboration between two artists who have a common understanding of life, collective subconsciousness and the universe. The digital brains behind the project is Chris Cheung, a renowned digital, tech and innovative artist in Hong Kong with works seen all over the world and at various museums and institutions in town. Cheung and his team at XCEPT create immersive soundscapes, generative art and data art, often referencing and exploring Eastern and Western philosophies. 

Looking at Cheung’s works over the years, one can observe common themes such as the passing of time, humans’ brainwaves and the universe, and Zen philosophies. Perpetual Records draws inspiration from the concept of Akashic records – believed to be a kind of database of every single event and emotion that has happened to all living things in the universe in the past, present and future – and reimagines the interconnectedness of Frog King’s ideas in a floor- to-ceiling mirrored space. 

What makes the artwork more special is the reference to Corsican Stars – if you’re a Cloud Atlas fan, you’ll remember the line “Find me beneath the Corsican stars, where we first kissed” – that suggests that no matter the time or place, meaningful encounters create their own magic, symbolising the convergence of love, fate and destiny. “When setting up the place, [Corsican Stars co-owner] Alvis [Pang] had the concept of ‘Ancient Tree of the Soul’ as a mythological narrative and creating Corsican Stars as a way to transport visitors to another dimension, hence a hidden bar,” Cheung explains. “For those who know of or visit the place, one can argue it’s either by chance or meant to be.” 

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When creating Perpetual Records, Cheung was determined to work with an artist who is iconic in the culture of symbolism and totems. “And Frog King is a key figure in the visual arts culture in Hong Kong. During the creation process, I mapped some of his symbols at different corners of this crystal world or data library,” Cheung says. 

If the digital work itself is an infinite universe, then why place a mirror opposite to it and reflecting the already-boundless world? “The mirror world is not a virtual world per se, but an expanded world beyond infinity,” he says. “In this maze-like database, we can observe Frog King’s wandering subconsciousness. It’s a generative algorithm that shows every visitor a different version of the universe every time they come in. But the fundamental message is that no matter when people do so, their minds are interconnected with each other, that they are looking at the work simultaneously.” 

This explains Cheung’s interpretation of collectiveness, that “humans will eventually return to this database”. While Frog King clearly states that he believes in “God”, he’s not referring to a specific religion. Some call it higher power, some question whether it’s an alien. Frog King grabs the loaf of bread next to him and jokingly says, “Perhaps this is a relic from ancient history. Who knows? People are yet to understand those from Sanxingdui. When it doesn’t have a meaning yet, does it mean it’s nonsense?” 

If the world, the universe and our minds are yet to be defined, what is the purpose of human existence? What is our role or value? Frog King emphasises the importance of coexistence. “All of us are intertwined, and each and every one of us exists to support one another – this is our value,” he says. “The world wouldn’t be what it is now had it happened any other way, or had anyone not existed.” 

Interestingly, this is also the basis of AI and machine learning. “Database” is the keyword of the artwork, in which Cheung compares mankind’s ideology of the world with the concept of AI. “The two are in fact similar. Each individual evolves in order to push the ‘master subconsciousness’, or collective subconsciousness, to evolve,” he argues. 

“If we explain it with the mechanism of AI, each individual is essential for the collective to grow. When the master subconsciousness reaches a high enough dimension, all of mankind, or even the world, will make evolution happen. Hence, when contemplating our purpose on Earth, from a higher technology or enlightenment perspective, each of us exists, learns or experiences the world with an ultimate purpose to advance the collective subconsciousness.” 

Perpetual Records, especially after a couple cocktails and shots, blurs the line between the real world and the virtual world. When visitors look into the mirror, what exactly are they looking at? Cheung explains the idea of non-self, saying, “There’s no need to focus on whether ‘you’ exist in that very moment. Ideally, everyone is to focus on being carried away in their subconsciousness and follow where Frog King’s symbols take them, achieving what we call a non-self status where one’s physicality
and self don’t exist anymore and they are just a part of the collective. If one still clings to their presence, they haven’t truly immersed themselves in the world yet.” 

Concepts such as non-self are easier talked about than achieved. And yet, the legendary Frog King has been doing exactly that for a long time, despite his somewhat controversial practices early on. While most of us worry about rent and other costs of living, for example, Frog King is not one to feel particularly stressed. So when it came to paying this month’s rent, and Frog Queen expressing her desire not to dip into their savings, he created a flurry of new works overnight to sell to a
friend and raise enough money to cover rent and more. 

On the topic of making sense of our world and self, our language system plays a key role in shaping our minds and ways of thinking. Apart from the symbols he created for Perpetual Records, Frog King is known for his unique “sandwich fonts”, which he creates by combining Chinese characters and English words in his ink works. He describes his work as “organic”, as opposed to AI and algorithms. 

“I keep myself relevant by managing Facebook and Instagram pages, and using technologies such as WhatsApp,” he says. “The world is moving so fast, and we are required to learn and absorb new things every second. And yet, at the same time, we are easily distracted by it, and sometimes I need to turn off my phone in order to just fall asleep and remain undisturbed. In such turbulence, the purpose of art stands out even more – that is, to balance society and humankind.” 

Take the new batch of fai chun, or red banners for Lunar New Year, that Frog King created as examples. The Chinese and English combinations are not random or meaningless, but rather together they have created a new word, or have created a new language system, putting together a more traditional context with Gen Z words. “This is to celebrate our unique Hong Kong culture, much like the cha chaan tengs that serve a mixture of food.”

Such theory can also be applied to Perpetual Records. While Frog King highly compliments his partner, he thinks of it as “combining a physical (art) world with the universe. It’s a play between physicality and virtuality.” He believes this is just a point in both of their orbits, a point where a series of events have led to them start working together. 

Aside from the artwork, visitors are invited to experience cocktails inspired by Frog King’s favourite food (desserts such as matcha) simply because – as demonstrated by one of his recent calligraphies – life is too hard and one can only bite the bullet and get by. While Frog King never creates with alcohol in his system, it might not be a bad idea to relax with a cocktail and immerse yourself in the maze of Perpetual Records. 

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