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News Release_Prayers to Fornax
Hyundai Motorstudio
2026-07-17
Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing Presents Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality, the First Exhibition of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025
• Curated by Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025 awardees Yifeng Wei & Penny Dan Xu
• Bringing together eight international artists and collectives, the exhibition explores the intersection of rational inquiry, technological systems, and spiritual imagination
• On view at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing from July 18 through December 13, 2026
• As a laboratory for the evolving role of curators, Hyundai Blue Prize+ invites curators worldwide to explore pressing contemporary issues, in connection with the contexts of Asia
Beijing, July 17, 2026 – Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing presents Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality, the first exhibition of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025, on view from July 18 through December 13, 2026. Curated by Yifeng Wei & Penny Dan Xu, one of the two final awardee collectives of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025, the exhibition brings together eight international artists and collectives, inviting audiences to consider the intersection of rational inquiry, technological systems and spiritual imagination.
Installation view of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025 Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, 2026
Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality invites audiences into a ritual of bridging the realms of rationality and spirituality. Fornax, meaning “laboratory stove” or “furnace,” is a constellation in the southern hemisphere named by French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille in 1756. Its scientific naming marked a historical shift toward a new ordering of the sky, one shaped as much by belief and imagination as by observation. This exhibition explores this intersection of rational inquiry and esoteric belief.
Installation view of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025 Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, 2026
The exhibition is structured around three interrelated lines of inquiry: searching for meaning that lies beyond the reach of science, through June Balthazard and Pierre Pauze’s Mass (2020) and Chen Zhe’s Celestial-cranial Instrument series (2022-2023); uncovering knowledge buried in the land, through Natasha Tontey’s Of Other Tomorrows Never Known (2023) and Riar Rizaldi’s Tellurian Drama (2020); and scanning the cosmos for signs, through Zach Blas’s Metric Mysticism: A Troll’s Tale (2022), Nolan Oswald Dennis’s Black Liberation Zodiac: Whale-mouth Solidarities (2026), Haroon Mirza’s Cymatic Ceremony (2024), and Suzanne Treister’s HEXEN 5.0 (2023-2025), examining whether shamanism, folklore and mysticism might offer new ways of perceiving, opening onto a broader constellation of understanding the world we inhabit.
Installation view of Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025 Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, 2026
“We are thrilled to present this exhibition, which invites audiences into a transformative experience that bridges different forms of knowledge. Moving between science and spirituality, the exhibition searches for futures that no single worldview can see alone.” said curators Yifeng Wei & Penny Dan Xu.
Hyundai Blue Prize+, an initiative led by Hyundai Motor Company, serves as a laboratory for the evolving role of curators, encouraging exploration of pressing contemporary issues through the diverse contexts of Asia. Building on Hyundai Blue Prize Art + Tech in China and Hyundai Blue Prize Design in Korea, the initiative evolved into Hyundai Blue Prize+ in 2025, expanding its scope to foster interdisciplinary research and transcultural conversations. The Hyundai Blue Prize+ 2025 open call received more than 160 exhibition proposals, from which two curatorial collectives were selected as final awardees.
“We are delighted to present Hyundai Blue Prize+, a newly evolved iteration of the Hyundai Blue Prize, through its inaugural exhibition at Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing. Bringing together science, technology, and spirituality, the exhibition, curated by Yifeng Wei and Penny Dan Xu, invites audiences to encounter new perspectives and reflect on how technology shapes the world we inhabit,” said DooEun Choi, Art Director of Hyundai Motor Company.
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Notes to Editors:
Exhibition: Prayers to Fornax: Science, Technology, and Spirituality
Duration: July 18, 2026 – December 13,2026
Venue: Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, E-1,798 Art Zone, 4 Jiuxianqiao Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Curators: Yifeng Wei & Penny Dan Xu
Participating Artists: June Balthazard and Pierre Pauze, Zach Blas, Nolan Oswald Dennis, Haroon Mirza, Riar Rizaldi, Natasha Tontey, Suzanne Treister, Chen Zhe
About the Curator
Yifeng Wei is a curator, researcher, and PhD candidate in Visual Culture at the National College of Art and Design, Ireland. His research engages with the aesthetics of opacity as a critical framework for resisting digital colonization and technological oppression. His curatorial and publishing projects—often involving critical writing and performative lectures—have been presented internationally at NCAD Gallery (Ireland), The LAB Gallery (Ireland), LUX Pavilion (Germany), the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca (Romania), the University of Cambridge (UK,) and Arizona State University (USA).
Dr. Penny Dan Xu is a London-based independent curator with 13 years of experience. She holds a PhD in Art History and is the founder of Across Platform, a not-for-profit research initiative. She also serves as an advisor to the art organization Baopu FELT. Her work focuses on collaborative research within and beyond the contemporary art field, with a commitment to slow thinking, cross-cultural dialogue and independent knowledge production.
About Hyundai Motor’s Art Projects
For over a decade, Hyundai Motor Company has deepened its partnerships with museums and cultural organizations worldwide, including Tate, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Korean Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Hyundai Translocal Series is a new partnership initiative that roots itself in fostering dialogues and collaborations among art institutions in Korea and across the globe. Hyundai Motor’s own art initiatives include open call programs such as the VH AWARD, the Hyundai Blue Prize+, and Artlab Editorial, a digital platform dedicated to art writing by transnational voices. These ongoing collaborations embrace the complexities of the cultural landscape by exploring new ideas and perspectives within and beyond the art ecosystem.
About Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing
Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing is a brand space for arts and culture in the 798 Art District, one of China’s most renowned creative districts. Inspired by the concept of “Creative Energy,” the space strives to enrich people’s lives and support the local cultural landscape by sparking artistic inspiration. Through immersive exhibitions and creative programs, including art and mobility contents, Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing presents fresh perspectives and engaging experiences.
For more information about Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing, please visit Hyundai Motorstudio Beijing. https://motorstudio.hyundai.com.cn/beijing/
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