Luxury stone makes its debut at the world's premier international art platform—Art Basel Hong Kong! From Art Taipei to Art Basel, and from Taipei to Hong Kong, CHENHOW MARBLE has joined forces with Each Modern to present nature's masterpieces alongside sculptures by Chen Ting-Shih, a seminal Taiwanese artist enshrined in global sculpture history. What inspired Aki Huang, Director of Each Modern, to conceive this visionary and groundbreaking crossover collaboration?

Held from March 28 to March 30 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Art Basel Hong Kong (Art Basel HK) featured 243 galleries from around the globe, including 10 participating galleries from Taiwan—with Each Modern among them. Within the "Insights" sector, in the dedicated presentation for artist Chen Ting-Shih curated by Each Modern, the sculpture works of this national treasure-level artist were displayed atop luxury stone pedestals. "Collectors on site were astonished by the exquisite natural patterns of Emerald in the Clouds, which live up to its striking name. Presented together with Chen Ting-Shih's sculptures, the setting exuded an impressive, harmonious presence." Aki Huang, Director of Each Modern, received this feedback during conversations with collectors during the VIP preview. "Many overseas guests were especially amazed to learn that these slabs and fabrications were imported and crafted by CHENHOW MARBLE, a luxury stone brand from Taiwan. Many expressed that they must personally visit the CHENHOW Luxury Stone Museum on their next trip to Taiwan."

Image / Aki Huang, Director of Each Modern.
 

"When initially proposing this collaboration, did you also sense a subtle commonality beneath these two seemingly distinct industries? During a deep-dive conversation with CHENHOW MARBLE Brand Officer Yu-Kai Chen when he visited Each Modern, Aki Huang discovered that CHENHOW's global journey of sourcing luxury stone closely parallels the work of a gallery director. "CHENHOW founder Po-Kun Chen and Brand Officer Yu-Kai Chen personally travel to quarries in Italy and Brazil, relying on an exacting eye to select raw stone blocks. This mirrors how we discover talented young artists." A gallery director acts as a discerning eye for artists—sensing an individual's innate talent from the initial interaction, even if it hasn't fully bloomed yet. "It takes vision and courage to embrace that talent, which is remarkably similar to CHENHOW's role in representing luxury stone. Both require extraordinary endurance and patience to wait for an unpolished stone to gain appreciation in the future."

Reflecting on this collaboration during his discussion with Aki Huang, Yu-Kai Chen shared a heartfelt perspective: "Many clients who encounter our stone intuitively sense that it is a masterpiece formed by nature. Yet when we stand before a piece of art, we naturally ponder what message the creator intended to convey. Natural stone, however, has no human creator to converse with, nor can we trace its exact evolution—we can only experience it through imagination." He realized that pairing a pedestal of raw, natural material with the work of an internationally acclaimed artist creates a compelling juxtaposition: "This combination prompts viewers to reflect—one is forged by nature, while the other is crafted by human talent. Their interaction generates a dynamic synergy, offering collectors a fresh, unprecedented depth of appreciation."
 

Image / Aki Huang and Yu-Kai Chen.

From an art management perspective, Aki Huang resonated deeply with Yu-Kai Chen's vision. "In today's world, visual impression plays a paramount role. Particularly at premier international gallery expos where thousands of artworks compete for attention under one roof, captivating a collector's eye requires more than just the inherent power of the artwork itself—it demands supporting components of exceptional caliber and texture to elevate the presentation." Drawing an analogy to fine art framing, she notes that from Old Masters to contemporary works, exquisite framing has become a decisive element in seizing collectors' attention, often bestowing an entirely elevated sense of value onto the piece. "We are extraordinarily fortunate to have CHENHOW's support, utilizing their finest luxury stone to craft pedestals for Chen Ting-Shih's sculptural masterpieces. Within this international arena, these pedestals stand as truly one-of-a-kind creations." For a professional art manager, such a visionary crossover collaboration not only shines a light on the artist's brilliance, but also showcases Taiwan's discerning eye for world-class design materials and aesthetics.

This debut collaboration between CHENHOW MARBLE and Each Modern represents a meeting of like-minded visionaries discovering new horizons within their respective fields. Interestingly, Aki Huang, a sociology graduate from National Taiwan University, and Yu-Kai Chen, who studied law at the same institution, unexpectedly discovered their connection as university alumni. "Neither of us followed our conventional career paths. But as I see it, our original fields aren't missing out without us, whereas entering completely different industries allows us to create unique, meaningful impacts on the world." Huang wholeheartedly agrees: "The art world often feels distant and enigmatic, yet we discovered that our underlying philosophies and work are strikingly aligned—especially in our shared dedication to aesthetics." This shared pursuit of beauty bridged the gap between stone sourcing and art management, reaffirming that beauty is a universal language that resonates directly with the human heart. Here, the masterpieces of nature and the creations of human artistry come together to generate a powerful, harmonious synergy.