The Wonderland by Tim Yip

The Wonderland 2019, Norway Print on Hahnemuhle Baryta Paper (framed), 80 x 54.4 cm “This snow-capped mountain lies in Norway, close to the Arctic Circle. Our group reached it first by plane, then by a three-hour boat ride. For most of the year, the area is cloaked in darkness, yet there was still a faint glimmer of daylight during our visit. In previous years, the region would have been entirely blanketed in ice and snow by November, but climate patterns have grown erratic in recent times, leaving stretches of slushy water that. That allowed our boat to sail through — otherwise, we would have had to break the ice first to proceed. I had been invited there to discuss a theater project; the local team wanted to build an Iceberg Opera House on the snow-capped mountain, a plan that eventually came to nothing due to its prohibitive cost.The entire mountain exuded an otherworldly aura. Standing before it, I felt a momentary daze, surrounded by an endless veil of thick fog that left me disoriented — unsure of my whereabouts or when we would reach our destination. Suddenly, a ship emerged from the opposite direction, and that unexpected sight stirred a profound sense of emotion within me.” - Tim Yip This work is part of MIRROR OF THE META: Incredible Reality, a solo exhibition at Asprey Studio by Hong Kong-born artist and art director Tim Yip. The exhibition explores parallel dimensions of reality where myth, memory and technology meet. It offers an intimate, contemplative encounter with Yip’s sculptural works, photography, and a sculptural reinterpretation of a traditional Chinese dress — each piece reflecting the artist’s enduring fascination with how imagination shapes our experience of the world. Tim Yip (b. 1961, Hong Kong) is an acclaimed artist, director, art director, costume designer and photographer for film and stage. He won the Oscar for Best Art Direction, and the BAFTA award for Best Costume Design for the film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (dir. Ang Lee, 1999). Through his prolific works in art, film, theatre and literature, Tim Yip has honed his thesis New Orientalism, which proposes that-far from being determined-supposed boundaries of geography and time are porous.