Comments to Hong Kong Town Planning Board (on Former Central Police Station Complex)

I have sent my comments to the Town Planning Board of Hong Kong and they are as follows:

First a big thank you to the team who was involved in this project, not only is this about the project, but also about starting a new chapter (or perhaps, the beginnings of the book) of conservation in Hong Kong.

I think it is essential that with the argument of sustainable development, the essential aesthetic, architectural, historical, engineering fabrics should be kept intact. Because, to me, these are the essence that will make people understand / create new dialogs based on the significance in the past. Future uses of these 'fabrics' must respect and relate to these 'fabrics'. If this is not done appropriately, we are left with the facade of a historical building, but no core value or essence that will tell the story of its past or of Hong Kong's past.

With such concerns in mind, in my opinion, it is essential that the building height of the new building in planning should have a height restriction. The argument for this is that the reason why this new building exists is because of the old existing building.

If we look at this plan as a movie / a song, the new building should be supporting artist to reveal the core value or essence of the main artist as well as the plot of the movie / movement of the song. If the supporting artist performs well, it would mean that he / she has done his / her best to be a supporter.
If he / she takes over the main artist, then he/she is not performing his/her task as a supporting role. This will create a discord and disrupt the harmony of the film / song. And the audience will be left in confusion as to which narrative they should follow.

Here's the link to their website:
http://www.centralandwestern.org/Y.H3.4/index.html

Happiest news from Hong Kong

Hong Kong contemporary art being celebrated in Tsim Sha Tsui Hong Kong Museum of Art!!!

http://hkadc.blogspot.com/

3 days of not showering... which made me think (since I had a lot of water to waste with the 3 days quota)

1) Do they have a Guinness world record for this?

2) When did the notion of 'shower every day' come into popular minds in our modern age, I'm guessing post industrial revolution as cities became crowded, filthy and dirty, there was a demand to lower the potential of germs getting spread around.

3) Have our immune system deteriorated because we are cleaner these days? If yes, does it mean we should not keep our places 100% clean for babies because they need to develop their own immune system against the environment.

4) The New York Times proved my theory on 3) right : )

Do we dream enough?

My family friend's dream was to open an ice cream shop... and she made her dream come true, when's yours?

They were both investment bankers in Wall Street turned Ice Cream shop owner.

Do we dream enough?

http://sweetrepublic.com/press/Phoenix-Magazine-03.09.html

http://www.sweetrepublic.com/

從博物館走上街頭尋找港人身份認同．謝曉陽 (亞洲週刊)

專訪香港歷史博物館館長丁新豹
從博物館走上街頭尋找港人身份認同．謝曉陽


殖民地的歷史，該如何書寫﹖丁新豹打破中國傳統禁忌，導

領遊人開展墓園和義莊之旅，了解香港歷史文化。丁新豹鼓勵學生走出教室、博物館，從街道變化去探索社會變遷。


殖民地的歷史，該如何書寫﹖在英國殖民管治一百五十年下的香港，一個擁有二千年歷史的東漢古墓知名度，不如一幢金光炫耀的百貨商廈。而香港歷史博物館，矗立鬧市中央，卻活像一座老古董，問津者稀。今年是歷史博物館跨進第三十一個年頭，館長丁新豹接受亞洲週刊訪問時談到，為了蓄養香港人對歷史文化的興趣，他要走出博物館，導引港人從街頭巷角去了解自己的歷史。

墓園和義莊，都是華人社會的禁忌，卻也是活的歷史見證。今年五月，丁新豹組織了一趟義莊之旅，導領港人進入具有一百二十年歷史的東華義莊的文化與被封埋世界。去年底，歷史博物館也辦了兩場從墓園追尋歷史，打開了中國人進入墓園的禁忌，也打開了歷史博物館走進香港社會的大道。以下是丁新豹接受亞洲週刊採訪摘要﹕

你帶香港人遊墓園的用意在哪﹖

墓園其實是一個非常有歷史價值的地方，譬如去年十一月我領隊去的、位於跑馬地的「香港墳場」，它的前身就是「殖民地墳場」，是香港島歷史最長久的墳場。閱讀一座座墳碑，就像在閱讀著香港的殖民史。不少香港歷史上顯赫有名的人，包括巨商買辦何東、孫中山的老師何啟，還有置地集團的創辦人等等，都長埋於此。

位於香港西環摩星嶺的「超遠墳場」，則另有特色。那是一個混血兒墳場，一八九八年，當時在香港的混血兒逐漸以香港為家，不完全屬於英裔，也不完全屬於華裔，因此向政府要求蓋一座讓他們死後可以安眠的混血兒墳場，何東的小兒子就葬在這裡。從碑誌中，我們知道，何東痛失這名不到十歲就病故的兒子的傷痛。還有，澳門賭王何鴻燊的爺爺及父親也安葬於此。

你在香港這座所謂的國際金融中心成長，如何跟歷史、文物結緣﹖

我從小學開始，就喜歡看中國的連環圖，而且大部分都是歷史故事，譬如水滸傳、三國演義、隋唐演義、楚漢相爭等等。從那時起，我便對歷史有興趣，後來念大學有更多機會接觸歷史。我認為要培養一個人對歷史有興趣，一定要由小時候開始。

你很主張走出文物、走出博物館，有什麼具體經驗﹖

從十四年前，歷史博物館就開始舉辦「香港歷史文化研究報告」比賽，目標是提升學生對香港歷史文化的興趣，歷史不應該給人死讀書的印象。直到去年，參加這個比賽的中學已經有一百間。每年，我們會先釐定一個研究議題，譬如某一年，同學去研究香港街道的歷史，他們在圖書館或其他地方收集資料和文獻，然後再到現場，與該區的老人家進行口述歷史的資料收集工作。當時有一組同學做的是有關九龍馬頭圍道的歷史，他們逐間店舖去訪問，請當地居民談談那條街道的變化，再透過街道的改變去觀察社會的變化，這都是非常有意思的，因為學生可以走出課堂去接觸歷史。

此外，我們四年前還針對高中生開始舉辦「小小館長培訓班」，由博物館的同事指導他們如何處理文物、認識各種不同的物質、如何做剪栽等等，這對學生往後認識歷史，甚至在社會上工作，都有助益。

走出博物館、推廣文物教育的想法，跟香港特殊的歷史環境有關嗎﹖

香港被英國殖民統治一百五十年，在殖民教育制度下，人們對歷史陌生是可以預料的，再加上，香港是一個地產掛帥的社會，地產商總將土地的價值算盡算透，以致樓房蓋完又拆，拆完又蓋，這對香港人認識歷史沒有好處。在這種相對惡劣的環境下，歷史博物館的生存空間自然被局限，所以我們必須推動文物教育，加強文物與人們的互動，走出博物館。

歷史博物館這三十年走下來，很不容易吧﹖

在香港，歷史博物館的生存的確比藝術館、科學館困難一點，路也走得比較曲折。最初，我們被安排在尖沙咀星光行裡的一角，遊人來逛商場，就將我們當成是娛樂場。後來到了九龍公園，雖然面積大一些，但由於那是舊建築，而且四處是叢林，所以白蟻和昆蟲到處爬。在那個年代，港英政府不是很重視歷史博物館，他們給藝術館的資源比較多。到了九五年，政府才正式拍板給目前這塊地方我們興建博物館，然而，因為將近九七回歸的日子，我們在規劃展覽的時候，又出現了如何詮釋歷史的兩難……直到九八年，我們才正式搬進目前的館址，有正式的展覽場地。

博物館目前有何困難﹖

博物館有兩大特色，就是會花錢和效益不顯著。香港政府每年給我們的預算有六千五百萬（折合約八百三十萬美元），但保護文物需要人力物力，雖然我們已經有一百人，還需要大量義工。這兩年，願意到博物館來當義工的人越來越多，跟我們去遊覽歷史古蹟的人也非常踴躍，這可能跟香港人開始思考身份認同的問題有關。

走過了三十年，正值香港回歸中國大陸初期，歷史博物館有什麼計劃和期待﹖

近年我們有兩個新的趨勢，一是增加了跨地域文物的展覽，譬如今年初就辦了「粵港澳東西文化交流展」，展出十八世紀以來這三個地方有關文化交流的文物。當然，我們也加強展出中國大陸的展品。第二，我們開始針對社會的需要，規劃不同的展覽。以前，博物館都按照自己的編排陳列展品，但現在，我們會適當跟上時代的脈搏。譬如去年是抗日戰爭結束六十週年，我們就展出中日關係，講抗日到今天的歷史演變。

此外，我們正在思考，如何吸引更多大陸旅客。我們知道，這些旅客到香港，除了想逛逛街之外，也很想看看香港的歷史文化。如果他們一抵步，先到博物館來參觀，對他們認識香港很有好處。

你似乎從小就選擇了歷史這條路，那你認為，「歷史」的價值是什麼﹖

首先，我覺得歷史可以使人類聰明，達到溫故知新的效果，可以看古知今。而從更高層次來看，追溯歷史的發展軌跡，人們可以從知過去，而觀未來。譬如今天中東發生的事情，其實不是現在才有的問題，其實歷史上早已存在。了解了歷史的發展軌跡後，對自己看時事和政治觀點，都有所助益。至於對被殖民後的社會來說，認識歷史，更會增加人們的歸宿感，如果香港人對這塊地方認識越多，便會懂去保存它、愛護它。■

Reference:
http://www.yzzk.com/cfm/Content_Archive.cfm?Channel=tt&Path=347291401/20tt1a.cfm

A quote on skyscrapers of our generation

"Designs that are vast only by their dimensions, are always the sign of a common and low imagination. No work of art can be great but as it deceive, to be otherwise is the prerogative of nature only"

-------- Humphry Repton (1752-1818) quoting Edmund Burke

In plain simple English:

Designs that are merely big in scale are a sign of lack of imagination. All artworks that are great are artificial. Only nature is allowed to do artworks that are natural.

That was written in the 18th century, and it refers to British landscape designing, so I guess we have moved ahead of their times and realised that this statement is faulty?
And we should continue to race against each other to build the tallest, highest, most expensive building in the world to prove that we have great engineering capabilities and inventiveness.

While the electronics world are coming out with products that are becoming more compact with more functions and memory; buildings are becoming bigger, taller, grander.
Well, I guess they are the same afterall, they are simply consumer products of our age, with price tags stuck on them to see who becomes the most famous brand as well as help consumers make 2nd hand profit on ebay or in the real estate market.

One of my philosophies in life, that hurts.

"It's alright to make mistakes, just don't lie about them. Life's simpler that way."
------------ anonymous artist wrote in Japanese.

"I guess if we tell the truth, we don't have to remember anything."
------------ reaction to the artist's work by S. Aw

I follow this philosophy and hence I offend and hurt a lot of people.
My apologise.... but it's unlikely I will abandon this philosophy anytime soon.

Can't wait

I can't wait to graduate and get a job.

I can't wait to do something really meaningful in life and get paid for that.

I can't wait to be touched by all the beauties in life and work with them in my future job.

I can't wait to combine different perceptions of what art is all about and present it to whom art is all about. The people.

I have a burst of energy waiting to be released to good use (I hope) and I just can't sit still on my chair thinking about how one can touch another's life through history, art and architecture.

But most of all... I can't wait to be over and done with essays and presentation in the horrible month called March.

I digress too much.

I can't wait for my next digression.

Sudden thought on the difference between English and Chinese language.

A sudden thought came to me while i was clicking through the internet and sauntering in my studies.

I just thought about capital letters in the English language and how Chinese does not have capital letters.
Is there a paper about this difference and what that means to English and Chinese as a language and how people are influenced or not influenced by that?

The beauty of chance reflections that city dwellers perhaps lack there of

'if a man was to take notice of the reflections that came into his mind on a sudden, as he was walking in the fields or sauntering in his study, there might be several of them perhaps as good as his most deliberate thoughts'

-----Alexander Pope, English philosopher

Chip Tsao (陶傑) compares HK students abroad in UK and HK local students

http://hk-magazine.com/feature/vote-your-feet

For me it was very uninspirational, condescending and very generalised.

But perhaps I should learn more how the HK government uses its money on subsidising students to go abroad and how it uses its money to do education reform in HK....

But Mr. Tsao who claims to be The number one scholar in Hong Kong (香港第一才子) should know that not all things are skewed to one side.

1) “patriotic education” - go to any country and tell them that learning one country's national anthem and mandatory hoisting one's national flag is an ill founded idea and see what they say to you.

2) Would the Labour government in UK or the Democrats in US educate their children about the corruption of their own party and reveal all the dark secrets behind the scene?
NO.
Why do we know about that then?
Because they have different ruling parties who know how to play politics to reveal that to the wider public. China has one and only one ruling party, why would it let you dig up its dark secrets?
Would you dig up your own dark secrets Mr. Tsao? Or does paparazzi generally dig it out for you?
So there is nothing wrong with not including “Mao: The Unknown Story” by Jung Chang in their high school education, it's the political, social system of China that is different if you want to be precise.

3) Lan Kwai Fong is crowded with foreign students and they can tell 'a martini from a Babycham' because their studying environment provides them with the skills to do so.

When have you seen a foreigner study in local high schools?
And when have you seen local HK students integrating foreigners into their circle of friends like what Singaporeans do?
It's because UK boosts cross cultural exchange and when you are a kid studying abroad, you try your very best to get to know other cultures so you won't stick out like an odd ball.
The so-called 'government official’s children' (which I am not one of) can tell the difference between one drink from another because they can integrate with other cultures easier than, say foreigners can to HK culture.
The root of all evils is the dominant language called English, which is taking over the world.

Why don't you ask a foreigner whether they can tell one dim sum from another?

4) Modern education basically started as a result of Industrial Revolution, there were too many kids in the filthy dirty streets, and intellectuals saw fit to house them in proper institutions so they can becoming a functioning part of an element in an industrialised society. Now we have come a long way from that and the British have refined their model according to their own needs and wants because they have been the ruler of their country for the past centuries or so.
Hong Kong, being a British colony in the past, obviously created an education that was favourable to the British which meant that the education system would work as a factory to create a cream of society who would want to go to Britain for further education.

But Hong Kong have just took back our autonomy for 11 years and the government is struggling to come into terms with post colonialism and has failed to provided a successful education reform, and a lot of people has lost hope in that reform. It doesn't mean adopting or assimilating Chinese education into our system is not good. Look how prestigious Beijing University and Tsing Wah University is in the world.

So please stop being fearful of being patriotic and be proud of being a Chinese, because whether you like it or not. Hong Kong is going to become directly under Chinese rule in 2047. And the best is not to breed misunderstanding and mistrust between Mainland China and Hong Kong, but to actively engage in cultural exchange that is not only driven by economic forces, but through educational reforms.

If you don't want to be patriot about loving China, then don't.
But at least love Hong Kong and give suggestions on ways of improving local education instead of dreaming about the past. Rather, try and understand the past so you can try and predict the future.

Banned kissing on no kissing zone in front of railway station

A ban on kissing in order to stop the delay of taxis from leaving the train station.

Are you kidding me!?!?

Are politicians stupid!?!?!

'O, I will definitely vote for Mr. Smart Guy. He did many things for the community but mainly I am voting for him because he helped pushed the legislation so we now have a ban on kissing outside Warrington Bank Quay railway station'

I can't even think of a comparison to this magnitude of stupidity..... wait you even have a passion police to monitor the couples?

Virgin Train's statement: At a time of recession, this is some much needed fun and it will not expand to other station.

Sure, I just lost my banking job and has a rent to pay and 2 kids to feed. I want to kiss my partner before I go hunt for a janitor job... oh wait, I can't kiss here... and I have to go to the kissing zone. Oh this is much needed fun and it soooooo brightens my life up.

Oh, I found a comparison. You ever had a romantic night out gone wrong, cause you made all the wrong moves and gave all the wrong signals?

Well, kissing is about romance, kissers aren't smokers, kissers can't have designated zones to make out. It totally kills the romance.

1) Nipples 2) MOMA Ad-Bombs Brooklyn's Top Transit Hub 3) Angel of the South 4) Chinese moral story from Ming Pao

1) Grow up... they are nipples, cows have them, your mum has them.
As if you would turn down a free Picasso if it was given free to your gallery. Not that Christina here has the same energy or artistic quality as Picasso, but find a better excuse to turn down paintings than 'because the nipples might offend viewers.'


2) I have seen ads for museum and gallery visits in public transport systems. But not something like this scale. I bet people from MOMA had more crazier ideas but perhaps was downscaled since the subway is after all a place to facilitate a undisturbed flow of sardines from one place to another.

What I love about it is how
"A few of the works even have audio guides, which can be heard on the stations’ pay phones or downloaded to portable devices."

Congratulations to MOMA efforts. Transport railway systems and government bureaucracies need to have maximum creativity in their space to inspire the public rather than cool, inhuman management risk free space that is clean and boring enough for it to be like airport toilets.

3) A giant horse in Kent is the Angel of the South..... hmmm.... very creative indeed... may I ask whats so special about this sculptural horse?

It's HUGE.... oh... and whatelse?
.... It's HUGE......

I have to say though.. compared to the other competitors, this makes much more sense.. actually the more I thought about this article on "What Does the White Horse Mean?", the more sense it made to me. For me, it is the tie of the Horse to the landscape around it that made the most sense. Afterall this sculptural piece is relating itself with its outdoor surrounding very beautifully.

4) The story of leeching from the wealth of other people and turning into your own.
The difference between Mr. Bill Gates and Mr. Richard Li.

The long forgotten Central Police Station of Hong Kong

Remember the heated debates of the Central Police Station and how people argued that the design by Herzog & de Mueron was too big and overshadowed buildings behind it.

After careful research, the Heritage Hong Kong has come up with something, so rather than read the news / listening to politicians debate about it and agree / disagree with the new reporters, why not read the original documents and make your own judgements and give comments?

Do make your comment to Town Planning Board!
Deadline for comments: 27/02/2009

http://www.info.gov.hk/tpb/en/plan_application/Y_H3_4.html

http://www.heritage.gov.hk/en/online/press2009/20090207.htm

http://www.heritage.gov.hk/en/whatsnew/events_08.htm

Summer voluntary work: 1) Echigo Tsumari Art Triennial 2009, 2) Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009, 3) Fundraising efforts:

Dear all,

I will be doing voluntary work in Japan this summer. In the remote
rice farming communities of Echigo Tsumari, Niigata and also in the
sprawling metropolis of the city of Osaka.

1) Echigo Tsumari Art Triennial 2009

Echigo Tsumari (Niigata province, Japan) is a city scattered with rice
fields, dotted with hills and a brush of river running in between. The
art triennial is about using public art to revitalise vast amounts of
land covering six farming municipalities.

The story goes that urbanisation, a lowered demand for pearl rice in
Japan and a declining birth rate has meant that schools continue to
close down and the average age of the population continues to
increase. Its a trend that the entire nation will have to face and, in
many ways, what happens in the villages is a preview of times to come.

300 or so artists, mostly from Japan, but also selected from all over
the globe, will gather in Echigo Tsumari this summer to celebrate it's
4th Triennial by creating artworks addressing themes touching upon
the vice and virtues, friendships and conflicts of our contemporary
world.

I shall be working with a Hong Kong artist, Mr. Kingsley Ng (伍韶勁), who has
been selected by the Echigo Tsumari community to create an artwork
amongst rice paddies and village townhouses.

Please follow the link to see one of Mr. Ng's art piece called metier
a tisser musical (Musical Loom)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=HK&hl=zh-TW&v=qXjKmerqHwY

The following are related links:

facebook group:
Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial 越後妻有大地の芸術祭

Kingsleys Ng's homepage:
http://www.kingsleyng.com/

Echigo Tsumari Art Triennial 2009:
http://www.echigo-tsumari.jp/

2) Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009

I shall also be working on an art project for the
city of Osaka under the title 'Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009', an
initiative that aims to bring water back to the city of
Osaka.
Osaka was once known as the Venice of the east due to its rich
waterways. Modern infrastructure has meant reclamation and an
explosion of vehicles on concrete roads instead of water
transport as a way of commuting.

The project aims to stimulate questions about modern urban land use
and explore various themes such as conservation, nature,
city, development, and urban interaction.

The following are related links:

Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009' Touting new city image
http://www.osakacity.org/news/newsItem.aspx?news=370

Kansai in Focus: Waterside with people: for revival of 'aquapolis'
http://www.kippo.or.jp/KansaiWindowHtml/News/2008-e/20081105_News.html


3) Fundraising efforts:

In order to make all these happen, we plan to
have a tour to sponsor the artist, Mr. Kingsley Ng and
his team as well as students who will form a team at Echigo Tsumari
and Osaka.

The tour will be led by Mr. Alexander Hui (許日銓), a trained architect who was
a curator and lecturer from the University of Hong Kong. He also spent
some years as the executive officer of the Hong Kong Arts Centre.
He is currently pursuing a PhD degree and is also actively involved in
many community projects in Hong Kong.

One tour will cover a special preview to Echigo Tsumari to see the artists and volunteers at work.
The other tour will take all to a special visit to the Naoshima,
inland Seto Sea area for a special preview of not only places like
ChiChu and Inujima with the curators but also museums and art sites
under construction by Tadao Ando, Hiroyoshi Nishizawa and Li U Fan in
preparation for their opening in 2010.

If you are interested in these projects / tours / donations,
please email to

James Lam (林自立）
juanjaime@gmail.com

or
Alex hui (許日銓)
huialexy@hotmail.com

Warm regards,
James Lam

Things that brighten my life every Saturday

Before the discovery


After the discovery

More snowing in Edinburgh and food

Night snow scene...



They were in fact car tires making pattern on the snow, hence from the parallel lines, you could tell 2 cars moved back in order to get out.


Biblos Sweet Potato Wedges.... hmm... gems of Edinburgh food that I recently discovered. I can have this 3 times a day.


Home cooked Lamp Chop with Asparagus.... should've added corn for colour effect.
It tasted very lampy, which is exactly what I wanted, and as a result, my flat stunk : )

Snow and view from my bedroom

Pick your favourite, or least favourite, as the case may be.

Makes me nostalgic for the wonderful ski trip in Anzere, Switzerland some years back.

Blog on blog about teaching

I've taken up a part time job of teaching BBC (British Born Chinese) children Chinese. They age between 8 and 12. The hardest thing of all is to be mean and tell them to shut up since they are so adorable, the other hardest thing to do is to not smile and giggle when they are doing the mass reading from the text book. Simply the cutest ensemble of voices you can ever hear besides a baby doing dada sounds.

Anyways, teaching young children is not really that hard, I was afraid that they would be quiet and I wouldn't know what to say. But the problem in my classroom was keeping them quiet. And it is universal truth (if universal truths of any kind exists) that kids are all noisy, creative and talkative no matter what country you are in. And sensitive questions will be asked when you least expect it.

This blog on a teacher teaching English in rural parts of China shows a child wanting to be the first woman leader of the KMT party in Taiwan!!!