Hong Kong's fight to save its neon shimmer – a photo essay

Neon lights have been a staple of Hong Kong's nightscape for decades, each and every corner of the city basking in their gentle light. The use ... SkiptomaincontentSkiptonavigationCloseupofneonsignsinHongKong.Oneshowslettering,theothersignisofsteamcomingoffateacup.Photograph:MatjazTancicNeonsignsoncedominatedHongKong’sskylinebutareunderthreatfromnewregulationsandtechnology.Fortunately,heritagegroupsareworkingtopreservethembyEduardFernándezWed25Jul201806.30BSTLastmodifiedonWed23Sep202015.12BST NeonlightshavebeenastapleofHongKong’snightscapefordecades.AllphotographsbyMatjažTančič(exceptwherestated) WongShing-Fan,theownerofMidoCafe,apopularcanteenopenedin1950indowntownHongKong,hasrepeatedasimpledailyroutinefordecades.Everyevening,sheswitchesonthegreenandredneonsignwiththenameofthevenueonit,stepsouttothestreetandbrieflystaresatthefourred-litcharactersfloatingintheair,rightnexttothefirst-floordiningroom.“Theyareengravedintothenightandtheyremindmethatthisplacehasbeenhereforhalfacentury,asIhavebeen.ThisissomethingIamveryproudof,”70-year-oldWongsays. MidoCafe,openedintheheartofblue-collarYauMaTeidistrictin1950,hasbecomeafavouritespotforthosenostalgicforHongKong’sgoldendays NeonlightshavebeenastapleofHongKong’snightscapefordecades,eachandeverycornerofthecitybaskingintheirgentlelight.Theuseofneonlightsbecamewildlypopularasanewadvertisementmethodduringthe1950s,whentheeconomyofthecitystartedgrowingandaconsumeristsocietyquicklydeveloped.VyingforattentioninthecrowdedstreetsoftheformerBritishcolony,eachbusinessownertriedtooutmatchtheirneighbour’sneonsigns,erectingevertallerandbiggerbillboards.Soon,gleamingChinesecharacters,sleekdragonsandsuggestivefigurespopulatedthenightskyofHongKong,promisingallkindsofamusementstothevisitorsofthe“PearlofOrient”. Neon-litstreetsinthe1990s;NathanRoadlookingsouth,Kowloon;CourtesyofKeithMacgregor BrianKwok,anassistantprofessoratHongKongPolytechnicUniversity’sschoolofdesign,says:“Theshopownersjustbuiltwhattheyliked,itwaschaotic.Theneonsignscascadedoverthestreets.”ButthearrivalofLEDlightbulbs–moreefficientanddurable–theclosureofoldbusinessesandagovernmentcrackdownonoutdoorstructureshavestartedtopushneonlightsoutofthestreets,andHongKongresidentsaretryingtoworkouthowtopreservetheuniqueglowoftheircityscape. BrianKwok,assistantprofessoroftheschoolofdesignatHongKongPolytechnicUniversity,comparesneonlightsto“endangeredspecies”,quicklydisappearingfromthestreetsofthecity AccordingtoCityLife,aHongKongtourismmagazine,upto90%ofthemainneonlightsofthecityhavedisappearedduringthelast20years.“Neonhasbeenthelightofthecityforareallylongtime,youcouldn’tescapefromit.YousawHongKongthroughneonlightingorbecauseofneonlighting,”saysAricChen,leadcuratorofdesignandarchitectureattheM+museum,focusedonHongKong’svisualculture. Maintenanceworksaresometimescompletedinafewminutes,with(seemingly)veryfewsafetymeasuresinvolved Beforethemuseumopeneditsdoors,ChencuratedM+’sfirstonlineexhibitionin2014,ahighlypopularwebsitethatcelebratedthecity’sneoninstallations,fuellinganostalgicmovementtorediscoverthem.“Theyareindeliblylinkedtowhatthecityisinthepopularimagination,andwhenwedidthisprojectwereallystruckachord,”Chensays.Buoyedbythatinterest,projectssuchastheHongKongNeonHeritageGroup,foundedinJanuary2017,aretryingtogatherinformationaboutthelastfewstandingneonsignsandraiseawarenessoftheirdisappearance.“Wedon’twanttoseeneonsignsinamuseum,asdeadobjects,wewanttoseethemshininginthestreets,”saysCardinChan,oneofthemembersoftheinitiative,whichorganisesneon-relatedworkshops.Graphicdesignersandartistshaveboughtintotheinitiative’sgoals,creatingnewindoorneonsignsandinstallations,andpushingfortherevivalofaniconofHongKong’sidentity.“AlotofculturecomingfromChinaisinfluencingHongKongindifferentways,”saysKwok.“PeoplearebecomingawareofthedisappearanceofHongKong’sculture,andwanttoretainit,”hesays. AneonsignwelcomescustomerstoAnchoretcafeandboutiqueshop,inSaiYingPunneighbourhood NeonlightslightenthemoodinsidethecozyMum’snotHomebar Thiscomebackhashelpedsomeofthecompaniesstillcreatingandinstallingneonbillboardstofindanewwaytosurviveafteryearsoflosses.Aftermorethanthreedecadesinthebusiness,FrankSindecidedtolaunchhisowncompanyattheendofMay,FrankSinNeonLightBusiness,whichmanufacturesandprovidesmaintenanceforneonlights.Inlessthanamonth,hisnewworkshophasalreadyreceivedsixorders.Thisnewbusiness-ownersaysthatthedemandforneonlightswentupin2012,whenlocalartistsanddesigners,sometimesreturningfromoverseas,becameawareofHongKong’scharacteristicneonheritage.“EvenearlierIwouldconvincesomecustomerstouseneonlightsinsteadofLED,”hesays. ThegentleglowofneonlightshasilluminatedHongKong’sstreetsandalleywaysfordecades Neonsignsusedtocombinered-colouredChinesecharacterswithagreenpatternsurroundingthem,makingtheinscriptionseasiertoread TheneonlightofthefirstrestaurantsfromtheHongKongTsuiWahchain,combinesJapaneseandChinesecharactersandWesternletters,andit’soneofthelastlargeneonsignsstandingintheJordanneighbourhood Butothersdon’tthinkthisisasustainablemodel.WuChi-Kai,oneofthelastneonlightscraftsmenworkinginHongKong,saysthathisworkshopcan’tbesustained“throughsmall-scaleprojects”andsaysthathisworkshop’srevenueisdown80%from25yearsago.Atthesametime,techniciansabletorepairfragileneontubesaremoredifficulttofindthaneverandtheirservicesarebecomingpricier,shopkeeperscomplain.Theresultisthateventhemosticonicsignsstillstandinginthestreetsmighthavetwoorthreecolourtubesburnedout,orsomeofthepartsblinkinggloomily. WuChi-Kai,oneofthelastglassbendersinHongKong,saysthathehasstayedintheprofessionbecausehelikes“thechallenge”ofcreatingnew,impossible-lookingdesigns AndanewcontrolsystemforoutdoorstructuresaroundbuildingswasimplementedbyHongKongauthoritiesattheendof2011.Sincethen,manybusinessownershavebeenreceivingnotificationsaskingtoresizelocalneonsignstocomplywithlocalordinance.Accordingtothe2014M+museumonlineexhibition,thegovernmenthasremoved3,000unauthorisedsignboardsayearsince2006.WhenIvisitedKoonNamWahbridalshop,atraditionalshopforChineseembroideredweddingdresses,theownersaidthatitsneonlightshadjustbeenrepairedbutthattheywouldprobablynotlastmuchlonger. TheneonadvertisementofKoonNamWahbridalstore“willdisappearsoon,”accordingtotheowneroftheshop “Wearejustwaitingforthefinalnotice[fromtheauthorities]tochangetheneonlightforLED,”saysLamChok-Yi,ownerofKoonNamWah–nowoneofthelastshopsdisplayinganeonsigninYauMaTei,ablue-collarneighbourhood.“Societychanges,andwehavetofollowtherules,”shesays.TopicsChinaholidaysCitybreaksHeritageCulturaltripsAsiaDesignfeaturesReusethiscontentcomments(…)CommentinghasbeendisabledatthistimebutyoucanstillsigninorcreateyourGuardianaccounttojointhediscussionwhenit'sbackcomments(…)CommentinghasbeendisabledatthistimebutyoucanstillsigninorcreateyourGuardianaccounttojointhediscussionwhenit'sbackTravelAustralasiaAsiaUKEuropeUS