The Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC) on August 15 revealed Rebecca Ip as its new executive director, effective immediately. Ip succeeds Connie Lam, who led the institution for thirteen years. Arriving from the Victoria Educational Organization, where she served as executive director since 2019, Ip has over a decade of leadership experience in the fields of education, performing arts, and media.
“On behalf of the Hong Kong Arts Centre, I am delighted to welcome Ms. Rebecca Ip as our new executive director. Ms. Ip comes from a strong background of business development and management, operations, arts and education. We are thrilled to have her on board,” said HKAC chair Dominica Yang. “We are confident that under Ms. Ip, the organization will reinforce our brand and position in the arts scene, expanding our network and business operations, and building a strong infrastructure to support our mission and to strengthen our programs and arts education,”
Ip led the French International School of Hong Kong from 2014 to 2017 and the Hong Kong Ballet from 2010 to 2013; between 2013 and 2014, she served as senior adviser of strategic commercial planning for performing arts venues for the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority. She earlier launched the digital media practice of Disney Interactive Media Group at The Walt Disney Company Asia Pacific. Ip holds an MBA from London Business School and a BA from Brown University.
In her new role, Ip will oversee HKAC’s management and corporate strategies, including fundraising, marketing, and operations. Arriving just ahead of the institution’s forty-fifth anniversary, the celebration of which begins in September, she is also charged with managing the Hong Kong Art School, a self-financing studio school aimed at fostering emerging local talent and operating under the HKAC umbrella.
HKAC additionally thanked outgoing director Lam for her years of service. Yang acknowledged that during her Lam’s tenure, the institution “weathered many challenges and changes, playing a significant and impactful role in the development of the Hong Kong local arts scene through many local and overseas cultural exchange programs and community programs.” No reason was given for Lam’s departure; her LinkedIn account, however, notes that she is on a “long vacation.”