The true value of art – and whether money is the only way to determine its value – will be highlighted during an interactive theater production where audiences will bid on works of art during a real but alternative auction.

The touring show by Chinese creator and director Jingyi Wang, Post-capitalist auctionswhich features auctions for eight works of art, is part of Hong Kong’s Asia+ festival, which runs until next month.

The three-month festival is presented by the city’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organized by the Department of Recreation and Cultural Services. It includes more than 100 performances and activities showcasing cultural traditions and innovations, featuring leading artists from nearly 30 countries involved in the government-led Belt and Road Initiative. Chinese to improve trade and economic integration in Asia, Europe and Africa.

Wang’s first auction took place in 2018 in the Norwegian city of Bergen, where she lives, and she has since been featured in Yokohama, Japan, and the Canadian city of Toronto.

The public participates in each performance while works of art from the region hosting each exhibition are auctioned. They use an online application to place their bids while the process is projected in real time on a screen in the theater.

What makes this auction unique is that people have to bid using mottos like “opportunity” and “understanding”: what they bid depends on the imagination of the bidders.