Organisers: Hong Kong Arts Centre (Comix Home Base), Dan ARCHER (Archcomix)

Exhibition Curation and Production: Dan ARCHER (Archcomix)

Date: 2026.10.15 – 2026.10.28

Time: 8:00am-11:00pm

Venue: Comix Home Base, 2/F, Hong Kong Arts Centre (2 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong)

Free Admission

Exhibition Introduction

As a non-fiction cartoonist and live sketcher, Dan Archer draws as a means of remaining  present and to connect with his surroundings. The majority of the comics and sketchbook pages featured in this exhibition were drawn directly from life rather than from photo references, emphasising the diversity of this beautiful, crazy city. It ranges from the bustling markets of Wan Chai and North Point to the martial arts clubs of Sham Shui Po or the Dragon Festival in Tai Hang. 

Dan believes that drawing on-site allows one to directly capture the essence of a person or location more effectively and expressively compared to a smartphone or camera. When an interview is conducted, all speech balloons are direct quotes that the artist include as he sketches his  subject’s portrait in tandem, allowing him to preserve the authenticity and impact of an interview, plus  preserve their anonymity (if need be). The two main concepts behind this exhibition are; First, the unique advantages of hand-drawn narrative reportage in an era of AI slop, digital wormholes and doomscrolling.  Second is to showcase the development from Dan’s original sketchbook pages to the completed hand-drawn comics pages, demonstrating how one informs the other.

Exhibition Spin-off Event

Live Sketching Workshop

Date: 2026.10.17 (Sat)

Time: 3:00pm - 5:00pm

Venue: Lobby, 4/F, Hong Kong Arts Centre

Conducted in English

Quota: 20 participants

Fee: HK$450/ person

Special Offer: HK$400 per participant upon following Dan’s Instagram account @archcomix

Online registration required; first-come, first-served.

Registration link: https://forms.gle/FDuTG638yQAmqt558

Requirement: 

·         Aged 16 or above

·         Bring your own sketchbook, pencil, eraser, thin line pen and thicker line pen

·         All levels are welcome! Basic drawing skills are beneficial but not required

Event introduction:

In this workshop and live sketching demonstration, Dan Archer will  show you how  live sketching is used to capture the vitality  of an urban  scene, viewed  from the 4th floor of the Hong Kong Arts Centre, combined together with direct interview quotes (briefly interviewing one of the attendees) and overheard dialogue or ambient sounds. Participants will be introduced to  the fundamentals of perspective, composition, inking and watercolour as well as collaborating to sketch a hand watercoloured page as a group. 

Dan has conducted numerous  similar workshops worldwide,  including as an instructor for the International Urban Sketchers Symposium and at colleges and universities around the world.

Once registration and payment are complete, no cancellations or refunds will be accepted.

The organiser reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the event at any time.

Contact us

 www.hkac.org.hk

 Facebook: hkacchb | HongKongArtsCentre

 Instagram: @comixhomebase | @hongkongartscentre | @archcomix

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About the Creator

Dan ARCHER (Archcomix)

Dan Archer is a British graphic artist and author currently based in Hong Kong. For over 15 years, Archer has used cartooning and on-the-spot sketching to bring true stories to life on the page, from Colombia to South Korea and many other locations. His debut graphic novel, Voices from Nepal, was published by University of Toronto Press in 2024. When he is not drawing, Archer runs Empathetic Media, an XR studio working with clients worldwide, as well as conducting academic research on biological signals and perspective-taking inside immersive narrative scenarios.

Website: www.archcomix.com| Facebook: Archcomix| Instagram: @archcomix| Patreon: @archcomix

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About Comix Pulse

We are thrilled to announce that the Hong Kong Arts Centre (Comix Home Base) is now hosting the ‘Comix Pulse – Feel the Heartbeat of Tomorrow’s Comix’ from January 2026! Comix Pulse aims to spotlight the unique voices of emerging and existing comic and illustration book artists in Hong Kong. The programme provides a platform for artists to explore storytelling through visual narratives, culminating in a solo exhibition that showcases their creative process and final work. We are excited for all talented comic-illustration-artists in joining us. They will have the opportunity to present a solo exhibition of your works in the 2/F Comix Home Base of the Hong Kong Arts Centre and participate in public engagement activities (e.g., artist talks, workshops, live drawing). This is a fantastic opportunity to demystify your creative process and build meaningful connections between artists and the public.

For more information, visit here

【Comix Pulse– Feel the Heartbeat of Tomorrow’s Comix】– Call for 2027 Exhibition Proposals : https://hkac.org.hk/en/calendar_detail/?u=BAtyfyMX3ho

About Hong Kong Arts Centre

Hong Kong Arts Centre - Art for Passion, Art for Life, Art for All

Since 1977, the Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC) has been a platform for nurturing and supporting artists, and infusing art into everyday life. Its unique arts and educational programmes aim to make the arts accessible for all. The HKAC believes in the transformational power of art for people from all walks of life. Established for more than four decades, the HKAC endeavours to bring arts to the people of Hong Kong by presenting programmes in diverse art disciplines, such as visual arts, performing arts, moving images, media arts, comics, animation, arts education, lecture forum, public art, art festival and community art. With the vision of inspiring creativity in the local and international art community. With a vision of inspiring creativity in the local and international art community, HKAC focuses on four strategic areas: Leading Art Programmes, Nurturing Future Generations, Fostering Exceptional Art Education and Developing a Multi-Functional Building for Art in Wan Chai to create versatile exhibition spaces that accommodate a diversity of art forms and styles.

The HKAC aspires to engage everyone in the community to become an active participant in the arts - as an enthusiast, an artist or a patron. Let’s continue to embrace ‘Art for Passion, Art for Life, Art for All’, and share the inspiration.

Official website: hkac.org.hk | Facebook: Hong Kong Arts Centre | Instagram: @hongkongartscentre

About Comix Home Base

Comics and animation are important local pop culture and artistic creations. Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC) has been dedicated to planning and organising diverse and unique activities to promote the arts and culture of comics and animation to the local community and abroad.

Since 2006, HKAC curated Comix Home Base project (CHB), and has been working closely with comics artists, animators, industry practitioners and various government departments to promote local works. Over 1,000 ani-com-related events are hosted, such as exhibitions, talks, workshops, performances, publications, screenings, public arts, etc.

In recent years, Comix Home Base has continued to proactively orchestrate cross-media collaborations and look for crossovers between comics and different media like public art, movie, dance, intangible cultural heritage, martial arts etc., expanding the creative space for comix. Outside Hong Kong, the footprints of Comix Home Base can be found overseas in France, Belgium, Britain, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Japan, Mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, Russia, Indonesia, Portugal, Türkiye, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Austria, etc. This has facilitated the involvement of numerous Hong Kong comics artists in international collaboration projects. Also, local comics have been successfully published in different foreign versions in European countries and the United States, increasing the international recognition of local comics and animation artists.

Comix Home Base is fully committed to creating a platform for the art of Hong Kong anime and comics to flourish and keep elevating comics that are 'made in Hong Kong' to the global stage with stakeholders.

Official website: www.comixhomebase.com.hk | Facebook: hkacchb | Instagram: @comixhomebase