HONG KONG – M+, Asia’s global museum of contemporary visual culture in the West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK) in Hong Kong, is pleased to present Dream Rooms: Environments by Women Artists 1950s–Now. This Special Exhibition will present twelve environments by trailblazing women artists from Asia, Europe, and North and South America from the 1950s to the present, including three newly commissioned installations by Asian women artists. These immersive, multisensory works invite visitors to enter and interact with the space, underscoring that art is experienced and understood through both the mind and the body. The exhibition will open to the public in the M+ West Gallery from Saturday, 20 September 2025 to Sunday, 18 January 2026, with works also presented in the M+ Main Hall, Focus Gallery, and Atrium.

The exhibition was first presented at Haus der Kunst München in 2023 with the title Inside Other Spaces. Environments by Women Artists 1956–1976. The presentation at M+, the first edition of this travelling exhibition in Asia, is curated by Andrea Lissoni, Artistic Director, Haus der Kunst München, and Marina Pugliese, Director, Museum of Cultures, Intercultural Projects and Public Art, City of Milan, in collaboration with Russell Storer, Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs, M+.

Environments first appeared as an art form in the mid-1950s and 1960s, later coming to be known as installation art. Often ephemeral and experimental in nature and using unconventional materials and technologies, they combined aspects of art, architecture, and design, paving the way for the digital immersive experiences of today. While many of these works were made by women, histories of art have tended to focus on male artists. Dream Rooms: Environments by Women Artists 1950s–Now addresses this imbalance by foregrounding the visionary contributions of women artists.

Audiences will play an active role in the exhibition, engaging with and being stimulated by the sensations, materials, sounds, and objects as they become part of the works. The exhibition explores forms and ideas that speak to their time, while also encouraging visitors to explore, laugh, wonder, or embrace feelings of unease. The nine historical installations in the exhibition have been carefully reconstructed through extensive research and collaboration with artists, artist estates, conservators, and scholars. These are:

Vento di Sud-Est (Wind Speed 40 Knots) (1968/2023) by Laura Grisi (Italian, 1939–2017) – a powerful gust of air in a dark room brings atmospheric phenomena into the gallery, inviting visitors to reflect on our connection with nature and its relationship to our increasingly urbanised lives. The work is complemented by a film in which Grisi documents winds in different parts of the world.

Spectral Passage (1975/2023/2025) by Aleksandra Kasuba (Lithuanian American, born Lithuania, 1923–2019) – a monumental work that invites visitors to walk through a series of interconnected nylon structures, each illuminated by neon lights corresponding to the colours of the rainbow. Each space is paired with a different movement from English composer Gustav Holst’s orchestral suite The Planets, Op. 32 (1914–1917). The work represents a journey through a rainbow as we traverse the life cycle from birth to death and rebirth.

Penetración / Expulsión (del Fluvio Subtunal) (1970/2023) by Lea Lublin (Argentine French, born Poland, 1929–1999) – a transparent tunnel filled with clear PVC balls that represents processes of ovulation and pregnancy, inviting viewers to symbolically re-enter the womb. The inflated structure is connected to an external compressor by a tube that resembles an umbilical cord. Phalus Mobilis, its male counterpart, is a cluster of suspended, inflatable tubes that move as audiences walk through them.

A casa é o corpo: penetração, ovulação, germinação, expulsão (1968/2023) by Lygia Clark (Brazilian, 1920–1988) – a multi-sensory journey through darkened chambers that relive the tactile and visual experience of human reproduction. The work has several dark compartments, resulting in moments that are at turns constricting, destabilising, contemplative, and exhilarating.

Feather Room (1966/2023) by Judy Chicago (American, born 1939) – an all-white, edgeless, otherworldly space filled with 300 pounds of cruelty-free feathers that physically envelops visitors, making them active participants in the work. With its curved walls and soft, diffused light, the space creates a sense of isolation and infinity while challenging the male-dominated tradition of sculpture comprising hard materials and durable forms.

Ambiente cronotopico vivibile (1967/2023) by Nanda Vigo (Italian, 1936–2020) – a mirrored box backlit by neon light in different colours creates a magical effect, suggesting a portal to another world. With its controllable external switch that changes the colours of the lights, the work marked a step forward in the development of interactive art.

We used to know (1970/2023) by Tania Mouraud (French, born 1942) – a heat- and sound-based installation that provokes psychological unease, such as anxiety, fear, or a sense of threat. This deliberately repellant experience is in part a metaphor for the art world’s rejection of women at the time it was made.

¡Revuélques y viva! (1964/2023) by Marta Minujín (Argentine, born 1943) – a soft sculpture made of psychedelic interwoven ‘mattresses’ accompanied by the familiar music of the Beatles for audiences to enter and explore. Minujín’s intimate, inhabitable space evokes a sense of wonder and vitality, showing how the most ordinary things can be made extraordinary.

Red (shape of mosquito net) (1956/1985) by Yamazaki Tsuruko (Japanese, 1925–2019) – a suspended, glowing red cube draws audience inside, their shifting shadows visible behind a luminous screen. The structure echoes the cubic shape of mosquito nets hung over bedroom futons in Japan. The work was first shown outdoors in 1956 and revolutionised the way art was experienced at the time.

The three new commissions by M+ include The House Is Crumbling (2025) by Pinaree Sanpitak (Thai, born 1961), an experiential, ever-changing environment composed of thousands of Thai khid pillows. Visitors are invited to interact with the work by deconstructing and reconstructing the space, revealing how even the smallest actions can transform our surroundings. In the Focus Gallery, Infinite Memory (2025) by Chiharu Shiota (Japanese German, born Japan, 1972) features the artist’s signature red threads cascading through the space, enveloping three towering red dresses that evoke the female body and its indelible memories and experiences. To Breathe (2025) by Kimsooja (South Korean, born 1957) is presented across the Level 2 Atrium, wrapping the windows and skylights with a translucent diffraction film that reflects natural light throughout the day, transforming the museum’s architecture into a shifting, iridescent landscape.

Suhanya Raffel, Museum Director, M+, says, ‘This Special Exhibition resonates deeply with M+’s vision to present multidisciplinary and boundary-defying works that challenge the conventional art experience. We are thrilled to partner with Haus der Kunst München to bring this exhibition to M+ in Hong Kong, marking the first edition of the exhibition in Asia, where it continues to evolve with remarkable new commissions by Asian women artists. These environments underscore our commitment to advancing the practices of women artists within global conversations, bridging historical and contemporary practices.’

Exhibition co-curators Andrea Lissoni, Artistic Director, Haus der Kunst München, and Marina Pugliese, Director, Museum of Cultures, Intercultural Projects and Public Art, City of Milan, say, ‘Dream Rooms: Environments by Women Artists 1950s–Now brings to light a vital yet overlooked chapter in art history. These pioneering women artists have fundamentally transformed how we experience art, creating immersive environments that engage all senses and invite active participation. This presentation creates a rich cross-cultural dialogue that expands our understanding of both the art form and the contributions of female artists.’

Russell Storer, Senior Curator and Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs, M+, and exhibition coordinating curator, says, ‘By reconstructing these groundbreaking environments, the exhibition offers visitors the opportunity to engage physically with significant historical works alongside powerful new commissions by contemporary Asian artists. The exhibition invites our visitors to encounter art as a fully embodied experience, moving beyond visual perception to activate sensory, spatial, and emotional awareness. It fosters a deeper understanding of how art shapes our perception of space, time, and the self.’

In conjunction with this Special Exhibition, M+ will present a series of public programmes throughout the exhibition period. On the opening day, Saturday, 20 September 2025, M+ will host a conversation featuring exhibition co-curators Andrea Lissoni and Marina Pugliese. This talk will explore the development and curatorial approach of the exhibition and key concepts behind the works. This will be followed by an artist panel featuring the three commissioned artists, Pinaree Sanpitak, Chiharu Shiota, and Kimsooja, in conversation with Russell Storer, offering insights into their practices and exploring their interests in connecting with audiences through immersive and interactive works.

From September to December 2025, families can participate in six dedicated Family Days, which will include drop-in activities featuring body movement, sound jamming, storytelling, and interactive plays. The monthly Wellbeing Saturday, running from October to December, will combine yoga and slow- looking to encourage mindful interactions with the artworks. The exhibition also offers specialised programmes for different audience needs, such as schools, non-profit organisations, and people with diverse abilities. Guided services are available daily throughout the exhibition period. ‘Pillow Talk: Beyond the Dream’ is a series of special sessions led by M+ Guides, in which visitors sit in a circle and engage in a cozy fifteen-minute guided conversation on how the artworks resonate with our bodies and minds.

Special Exhibition Dream Rooms: Environments by Women Artists 1950s–Now runs from 20th September 2025 to 18th January 2026. More information available on their website