The People's Art of Hong Kong

One of the things I love to photograph when I'm wandering around Hong Kong is its down and dirty street art. Here are some examples I've found in Causeway Bay and Central over the past couple of years. I really love how the pieces — some by premeditation and some by chance — engage with their surroundings. Like unruly urchins, Hong Kong's street art offers a sly and subversive counterpoint to the oversize consumerist canvases that dominate the cityscape.

Hong Kong: City of Desire

From Sex in the City: HONG KONG (FormAsia Books, 2010)

Some of you have asked how come I haven't posted anything yet about my recent trip to Hong Kong. Bear with me — I'm still working on it, but have been unusually exhausted and distracted since my return.

In the meantime, let me draw your attention a new book that I recently read about (and might pick up on my next trip): Sex in the City: HONG KONG, a coffee-table collection of the bold advertising displays that dominate the city's visual landscape.

Here are a few of my own examples, taken during this past and previous visits:


A 21st-century Shanghai beauty gracing the historic Pedder Building, home of — you guessed it — Shanghai Tang.


I've been told that folks work hard and play hard in this city of unfettered capitalism. Which is one reason (besides the pollution) that I will never live in Hong Kong. Sorry, you can keep your cherries! I like to work soft — and play soft.


What are you waiting for, guys? Delay No More! Sounds like "F*ck your mother" in Cantonese, but it's actually a brand name marketed by G.O.D. (Goods of Desire), a sort of Ikea for Hong Kong hipsters. Just do it — as you gaze upon slender Charlene Choi pimping the "body shaping" services of Marie France Bodyline beneath a fatty fried egg!

The Seven Sisters

Don't mess with the Seven Daughters of Tsoi!

How's this for an unusual lineup: Patricia Lam Fung, Cantonese jade girl, just after her departure from Shaw Brothers; Amoy actress Xiao Juan, shortly before her reinvention as Ivy Ling Po, Shaw's queen of huangmei opera films; American-born Cantonese star Chow Kwun-ling, in one of her last movies; Ouyang Shafei, veteran actress of the Mandarin screen; and an 11-year-old Nancy Sit, years before she donned her first pair of go-go boots. The 1962 Cantonese film The Seven Sisters (aka The Seven Daughters of Tsoi aka Seven Playful Women) has them all.

The following synopsis appeared in Screenland No. 27 (December 1961). A scan of the original article is available here.

"THE SEVEN SISTERS"

Lap Tat Company's current comedy "The Seven Sisters" is an excellent piece of entertainment. But it also points out, quite seriously, to contemporary parents how to handle the love and marriages of their grown-up daughters.

The seven sisters are all daughters of Au-yang Sha-fei. The eldest Chau Kwan-ling is efficient business-wise. She has been taking care of the family business since her father died, never realizing that she is getting older and older, and not yet married. The second sister Mei Lan is more lucky; she is ready to marry a musician. The third sister Patricia Lam Fung is too shy and modest, trying all the time to match her eldest sister and Soo Siu-tong, who is secretly in love with her. The fourth sister, an expert on love, plays with fire and is almost burned. The fifth sister is not grown-up yet but trying all the time to convince others that she has. The sixth and the seventh, fortunately, are still too young to cause trouble, or the problem would be even more complicated.

Here are seven more lobby cards. I love the pointing motif that runs throughout the set.








I don't know whether to feel envious or sorry for the hapless fellows who marry into this matriarchal clan!

Cruising with Lily

Va-va-vroom! I wouldn't mind being Lily Ho's back seat rider.

I'm not sure when this was taken. Was it during the filming of Tropicana Interlude? Lily sure looks smart (and sexy) in her nautical get-up.

A very special thanks to Gilbert Jong for letting me post this fab photo — just one of countless treasures from his amazing collection.

eBay Bargain of the Week: Elegant Loh Tih

I absolutely adore this 1962 World Today magazine cover featuring the lovely Betty Loh Tih. For me, this photo epitomizes her cool beauty and effortless elegance. But since I'm trying to wean myself from my eBay habit, I'm going to pass this bargain along to you, my dear readers. It can be yours (cover only) for a total of ten USD (includes shipping). Buy it now before it's too late! More fab covers for five bucks a pop.

Soft Film Video Jukebox: Wonfu

One of the shopping highlights of my recent Hong Kong trip was coming across the new CD by Wonfu. I first heard about them several years ago on the sadly defunct Chinese indie music blog, My Randomness, but never got around to buying any of their albums.

However, thanks to the latest issue of Giant Robot, which I brought along to read on the plane, I was reintroduced to this wonderful Taiwanese band. Evidently, they visited the U.S. last October as part of a cultural exchange program sponsored by the government of Taiwan. Needless to say that I'm bummed about missing their shows in Berkeley and San Francisco.

So when I saw their new CD, Wonfu Loves You, at a shop in Hong Kong, I snatched it right up. Their music is pure pop delight and — as they say on their MySpace page — sounds like a smiling face.

Here's one of my favorite songs from the album: "印倫情人" (Indian Lover).

Shanghai: Through a Lens Darkly

I just got back from Hong Kong a few days ago and will be reporting about my trip soon. But in the meantime, check out my new post over at the Asian Art Museum blog about Zhang Yimou's Shanghai Triad (1995) and Xie Jin's Two Stage Sisters (1964).