How Villa Haw Par will be a link between Hong Kong’s and the world’s art scenes, according to its founder Arthur de Villepin

A major inspiration came from the Maeght Foundation museum in the south of France. Art dealers Aimé and Marguerite Maeght established the country’s first private foundation for modern and contemporary art in 1964. The couple turned their holiday home into a meeting place and collaborative studio for artists, many of whom were, or became, close friends, including Marc Chagall, Alberto Giacometti, Joan Miró, Alexander Calder and Raoul Ubac. Together, they aimed to create a liberal, friendly environment which De Villepin describes as “built for artists by artists”. The art pieces, exhibitions and literary magazines produced there weren’t market-driven but very much motivated by the artists’ own creative freedom, and meetings and salons hosted by the family.

De Villepin says that reading the Maeghts’ original charter altered his perspective on career growth. “When I started my own gallery, I always asked myself what the next step was: was it to have more galleries or more artists? Was it about having more of this or that?” he says. “Thanks to this couple, I now know my success is about finding a project that has depth, instead of measuring it with commercial fulfilments ... It is about creating places for creativity.”

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With Villa Haw Par, De Villepin wants to set up a creative space that both celebrates the property’s history and offers rising local artists a springboard to expand their careers. His plan will be realised in several steps. The first phase of the mansion’s physical restoration is underway, prioritising conservation and structural preservation over radical visual changes. In September, the mansion’s main hall will open as an immersive space, in which digital projections of the property’s historic look will showcase the site’s past splendour.

But he also clarifies that Villa Haw Par is not going to be a museum. “It’s not about restoring the mansion and its decorations to their original state,” he says. “We’re finding ways to transform the place. I am building [this art space] with 50 per cent [of what] is already there—and I’m putting a spotlight on preserving and enhancing this 50 per cent. The remaining half involves a mix of what I know—which is creating exhibitions, working with artists and curating programmes—and what my adventurous self intends to take on, which is bringing in [other forms of ] art, like cinema and design.” While, as this magazine went to press in mid-July, programming was yet to be announced, De Villepin says he already has plans to display sculptures in the garden and turn one of the halls into a bookshop.

By 2027, the focus will expand to include an elite international residency programme, aiming to host two to four multidisciplinary artists annually. The selection process will be highly rigorous, targeting artisans from around the world specialising in disciplines ranging from classical lacquer work and glass restoration to cinematic production and landscape design. Their works will then be shown on-site at the villa.

Villa Haw Par also plans to collaborate with a number of established institutions, such as Villa Medici in Rome, Villa Albertine in New York, Casa de Velázquez in Madrid, Villa Kujoyama in Kyoto, Villa Hegra in Saudi Arabia and Villa Swagatam, which has no set location but hosts programmes across South Asia. These heritage sites-turned-arts centres, similar to Villa Haw Par, offer residencies or programmes, such as exhibitions, festivals, concerts and performances, to support the careers and creative development of participating artists.

Read more: Surprise Surprise and Vox Vanguard turned the historic Haw Par Mansion into a vintage arts party

By working with these overseas establishments, De Villepin hopes to enable Hong Kong artists to gain access to travel and placements within them, so that they will grow an international career. At the same time, he feels it’s important to facilitate genuine cross- cultural dialogue through these collaborations. As someone who has worked both in Europe and Asia, he has seen a drastic change in art market interests, from Eurocentric to a growing curiosity about Asian art.

He says that “the most demanded [skill] in the art world in the next ten years will be this understanding of Asian [and] Chinese culture”, noting that eastern aesthetics remain widely misunderstood in the west. By offering global artists an environment steeped in Hong Kong’s distinct history and the chance for local artists to directly engage with international art platforms, the villa aims to challenge and reshape international creative perspectives and conversations surrounding Asia’s art scene.

For now, Haw Par Mansion is leased to his foundation for three years, but De Villepin is hopeful for a long-term renewal. He views art initiatives like Villa Haw Par as an essential direction for the regional art ecosystem to take. He observes that, while Hong Kong has built a powerful commercial art market driven by art fairs and auction houses over the past decade, today the city requires a cultural evolution that prioritises deep engagement over transactions.

“Art Basel was first introduced to Hong Kong when I arrived about a decade ago; the commercial art market here was still growing. Now, we’re in this new moment where we need creativity [within the art landscape],” he says. He sees his foundation as a model for the city, and hopes that by taking the lead in working on an art residency initiative like Villa Haw Par, he can inspire art collectors or other foundations to grow an alternative art ecosystem in Hong Kong.

“With Villa Haw Par, I want to show that there is another way in Asia to approach art and culture than just buying or not buying.”

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