CUS512O Topics in Cultural Representation and Interpretation :
Hong Kong Local Design more than commercial perspective
(Vincent Mak siu fung, e-mail:siufungmak2@ln.edu.hk)
Lecturer: Pro. Anne Balsamo
Official Design
West Kowloon Cultural District
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Kowloon_Cultural_District
http://www.wkcdauthority.hk/en/what_s_new/index.html
West Kowloon Cultural District
• The West Kowloon Cultural District
photo Baycrest - Wikipedia user ("CC-BY-SA-2.5")
The Government established
in April 2006 the Consultative
Committee on the Core Arts
and Cultural Facilities of the
West Kowloon Cultural
District (Consultative
Committee) and its three
advisory groups to reexamine the need for the
core arts and cultural
facilities to be provided in the
West Kowloon Cultural
District (WKCD) and the
financial implications for
developing and operating
those facilities.
Design on the street
West Kowloon Bamboo Theatre
竹棚 Bamboo scaffolding/scaffold
http://www.bambootheatre.wkcda.hk/
http://www.heritage.gov.hk/en/whatsnew/eve
nts_24.htm
• West Kowloon Bamboo Theatre
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_qHf0-Opi8
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lWhtbTGOPA&feature=player_embed
ded
The West Kowloon
Bamboo Theatre is
the first cultural
event organized by
the West Kowloon
Cultural District
Authority, it also
marks the launch
of the design and
construction stage
of the district.
The tradition of Bamboo scaffolding/scaffold
and theatre for opera
• Cantonese opera is one of the major categories in Chinese opera,
originating in southern China's Cantonese culture. It is popular in
Guangdong, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Malaysia. Like all
versions of Chinese opera, it is a traditional Chinese art form, involving
music, singing, martial arts, acrobatics, and acting. 粵劇 (Jyut6 kek6) should
not be confused with 越劇 (Yuèjù), the theatre of Zhejiang.
• Beginning in the 1950s massive waves of immigrants fled Shanghai to
destinations like North Point.[1] Their arrival boosted the Cantonese opera
fan-base significantly. However, a decrease number of Cantonese opera
troupes are left to preserve the art in Hong Kong today. As a result, many
stages that were dedicated to the Cantonese genre are closing down. Hong
Kong's Sunbeam Theatre is still one of last facilities that are left standing to
exhibit Cantonese opera.
• *Information from Wiki
The Implication of the comparison of West
Kowloon Cultural District and the trial run West
Kowloon Bamboo Theatre for Cantonese Opera
• Since Hong Kong Government want to establish a landmark of Art and
Culture industry to promote the world –wide city such as some other
country in the world. Government is developing a hardware in a newly
reclamation land to build an art district which supposed to be landmark in
Asia. This revealed that she doesn’t encourage the participation of the
artists’ view on the ultimate demand of the art and culture users and even
the true needs of the publics. In terms of customs and traditional
Cantonese Opera, according to some research and articles by S.Y. Chan
(Cantonese Opera in Hong Kong 神功戲在香港-1996),Tse Yin-mo, Xiao
Kou and Poon Sze-man (Scaffolding . Viewing . Assembling -2010), those
scaffolding bamboo theatre should be the original venue for the
performance of different sorts of Cantonese Opera. This is a proof of the
development of the local Opera performance initiated from the grass-root
every life customs. Although the opera originally are performed to worship
the ghosts in the ritual festivals like Tin Hau Festival and Bun Festivals. The
construction methods is a local technical craftsmanship which is one of the
Hong Kong local design .
Web based research
Artech (magazine,website)
http://www.artechpage.com/intro/
Magazine Editor in Chief: PingLing Cheung
Designer: Vik Lai
Company: A seed of http://vik.drawwithme.org/
Artech (magazine,website)
This is a Website and Magazine Issued in Hong Kong and China
As the editor in chief Pingling Cheung said: ‘Just like a magazine, the world of
architecture is both horizontal and vertical — this is why we connect them
together.’ This architecture magazine and
Website, designed and edited by Hong Kong designer and editor, concerns the
issues related mainly on the relationship between the architecture,
environment, urban planning and human living conditions.
In traditions, magazine concerned architecture should be composed of
building aesthetic and interior design issues. However, the concept of this
magazine stresses on the relationship between human and environment as a
whole which is opposite to the over development and rigid requirement of
the contemporary Hong Kong and China societies. The so call ‘well being ‘ in
the modern life for the citizens is being questioned in the direction of
consumerism nowaday.
Moreover, one of the uniqueness of the innovative idea is the lack of
advertisement as the main income of this magazine make it stands alone
from commercial editorial drive.
*Information form Artech Website
Interactive design
Art for All (community art organization)
Evelyna Liang Yee Woo
Artist, Art educator, Community Artist
Chairperson of Art for All
http://www.art-for-all.org/
http://maksiufung.com/works/g1/
• The Community art organization “Art for All” was
established over 20 years providing different areas art
and educational workshops for the minorities group in
local district and South Asia countries. The founder
Two Woo Leung is the former lecturer in the School of
Design, Hong Kong Polytechnic. While she was the
teacher of those young design students, she found that
the aim of the design education at that time stressed
only on the re-design and the luxurious products
provided for the wealth. So she led a group of young
designers and artists to run some artistic and
educational project for the weak and the minorities.
Her first project is some drawing workshops for the
children and women in the refugee camp in Hong Kong
in 80s.
Technology Object
Community museum project
http://www.hkcmp.org/cmp/index.html
Community museum project
• Community Museum Project was founded in 2002 in Hong Kong by
Howard Chan (art curator), Siu King-chung (design educator), Tse Pak-chai
and Phoebe Wong (cultural researchers).
• The Community Museum Project focuses not on establishing conventional
"museum" hardware but carrying out flexible exhibition and public
programs, often within specific community settings.
• Through this process the Community Museum Project aims to nurture a
platform to articulate personal experiences and under-represented
histories. It can also be an occasion to facilitate the participation of the
public and cross-disciplinary collaboration. The word "Community“ has
three connotations: subject matter, settings and creative public interface.
• *Information from Community Museum Project Website
Community museum project
• I think “Community Museum project” as an example of
local technological object with cultural significant
because it is re-defining the concept of original design
developed in Hong Kong. It is founded in 2002 by some
activists concerning the influence of everyday life
under the urban renewal development in some
districts. As Hazel Clark’s analysis (Back to the Future,
or Forward? Hong Kong Design, Image, and Branding,
2009) stated that It take the concept of the museum as
a method to represent the everyday life and value of
Hong Kong.
• Vincent Mak