The M+ Museum in Hong Kong is currently showing The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series: Picasso for Asia—A Conversation. The exhibition opened on March 15, 2025, and runs through July 13, 2025, at the West Gallery, Level 2 of M+.
This show is the first major Picasso exhibition in Hong Kong in over a decade. It is co-organized by M+ and Musée national Picasso–Paris (MnPP), which holds the world’s largest collection of Picasso’s works. The show is part of the French May Arts Festival 2025 and is supported by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.
Key Takeaways
- Over 60 Picasso masterpieces are exhibited alongside 130 works by Asian and Asian-diasporic artists at M+ Museum.
- M+ and Musée National Picasso–Paris organized this, the first major Picasso exhibition in Hong Kong in more than ten years.
- Focus on influence, politics, and legacy: Includes rare works like Massacre in Korea and new art addressing Picasso’s controversial biography.
What the Exhibition Includes
The exhibition features over 60 works by Pablo Picasso, created between the late 1890s and early 1970s. These include major pieces such as:
- The Acrobat (1930)
- Figures by the Sea (1931)
- Large Still Life with Pedestal Table (1931)
- Portrait of Dora Maar (1937)
- Massacre in Korea (1951)
These are displayed alongside about 130 works by 30 Asian and Asian-diasporic artists, drawn from the M+ Collection. Featured artists include:
- Isamu Noguchi
- Luis Chan
- Gu Dexin
- Nalini Malani
- Tanaami Keiichi
- Haegue Yang
- Simon Fujiwara
- Sin Wai Kin
The artworks span nearly 100 years of global art history, from the early 20th century to today.
How the Show Is Structured
To help visitors follow the themes, the exhibition is divided into four sections called “archetypes.” These sections focus on different ideas and assumptions about Picasso and other artists:
- The Genius – Investigates Picasso’s extraordinary early talent and the myth of the artist as a lone innovator.
- The Apprentice – Looks at how Picasso learned by borrowing, often controversially, including from African art.
- The Magician – Highlights Picasso’s fascination with the grotesque, the magical, and the surreal.
- The Mythmaker – Examines how Picasso constructed his own legacy—and how others deconstruct it today.
Each section connects Picasso’s work with Asian artists’ responses—some in admiration, others as critique.
Picasso’s Art in Communist China
One of the most surprising parts of the exhibition is Picasso’s unexpected presence in post-war China. Although his art was banned during the Mao Zedong era because it was considered “too personal and domestic,” one image made it through: his dove of peace, La Colombe.
This drawing was used in posters for the World Peace Congress in Paris in 1949. Despite strict censorship, it appeared in 1950s Chinese publications like China Pictorial. It was also printed on Chinese postage stamps with the phrase “defend world peace.”
The exhibition shows these prints and places them next to paintings by Qi Baishi, a well-known Chinese artist. His work adds Chinese wordplay to the dove’s symbolism, showing how global ideas are adapted to local culture.
A Rare Political Work: Massacre in Korea
Picasso rarely made direct political statements in his paintings, but Massacre in Korea (1951) is one of the few exceptions. It responds to the Korean War, which began in June 1950, when North Korea, backed by the Soviet Union, attacked South Korea, supported by the United States.
The painting shows women and children facing armed soldiers. The style is emotional and raw, similar to his earlier anti-war piece, Guernica. According to the exhibition curator, Doryun Chong, this painting was rejected by the Communist Party because it lacked strong propaganda messages. The attackers weren’t shown as aggressive enough, and the victims weren’t shown as helpless enough.
Even decades later, critics like Kirsten Hoving Keen noted that the piece avoided showing clear villains or national symbols, which made it harder for political leaders to accept.
The show also features a 2024 painting by Simon Fujiwara that responds to Massacre in Korea, reworking the message for today’s audience.
Revisiting Picasso’s Relationship with Women
In addition to political themes, the exhibition also deals with Picasso’s personal life, especially his relationships with women. Picasso has been criticized for mistreating his partners, many of whom were also his artistic subjects.
He was 45 when he began a relationship with Marie-Thérèse Walter, who was 17 at the time. This and other stories have led many scholars to reconsider how we view his work.
A standout response in the show is a digital animation by Nalini Malani titled Ballad of a Woman (2023). The animation plays across from Portrait of Dora Maar, one of Picasso’s most famous portraits.
Malani uses folklore, literature, and personal stories to highlight how women in Picasso’s life were often mistreated or overlooked. According to Chong, her work “magnifies the experiences of the oppressed” and offers a new way to look at Picasso’s legacy.
M+ as a Cultural Hub
This exhibition also highlights M+’s role in global art. The museum building, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, covers 65,000 square meters and includes 33 galleries, a Learning Hub, a Research Centre, a Moving Image Centre, and a Roof Garden.
The museum’s LED façade is one of the largest in the world and regularly shows digital art across Hong Kong’s skyline. M+ holds the M+ Sigg Collection, which is one of the world’s most important collections of Chinese contemporary art.
This exhibition fits into the museum’s mission to connect visual culture across Asia and the world.
Ticket Information
Tickets for Picasso for Asia—A Conversation also include general museum admission:
- Standard: HKD 240
- Concession: HKD 120
- Kid & Adult Combo (2-person): HKD 300
- Kid & Adult Combo (3-person): HKD 480
- M+ Member Additional Ticket: HKD 168
- M+ Patron Guest Ticket: HKD 120
Children aged 6 and under can enter for free. M+ Members get three free tickets per year and 30% off additional tickets. M+ Patrons get unlimited free entry with up to three guests and 50% off extra guest tickets.
