Mabel Lui
Scripps College, Media Studies and Art
Documenting Hong Kong’s Fading Cultural Practices
Home is where the heart is, and my heart will always belong in Hong Kong. The vertical city is an effervescence of culture and history, of modernism and tradition, constantly thriving in the in-between. As offices in skyscrapers dot the skyline with shimmering lights, behind the city’s urban landscape lies a distinct culture that is often forgotten or overlooked — one that is embodied by Hong Kong’s disappearing artistic practices.
In recent months and years, the city has been marred by politics and future uncertainty, and through my project I seek to explore the meaning of documenting these fragments of society and tradition as functions of fleeting time and place. This constant flow of change is where my nostalgia for Hong Kong and its fading practices were born and have continued to grow; after all, it’s undeniable that Hong Kong’s cultural practices will adapt and change over time alongside the city’s current of development and impending political change. My simple hope is that you’ll follow my footsteps and discover, embedded in these photographs, stories, and interviews, Hong Kong’s inexplicable charm in the frame of its past, present, and future.