H.K., a city of unintentional art?

Hong_Kong_food_stall_awning

Hong_Kong_food_stall_awning

There are a few cool cut-away views along the Central to Mid-Levels Escalator that make for interesting photos. I was walking down the pathway yesterday when I looked to my left, somewhere between Wellington Street and Queens Road.

The alley below contains outdoor food stalls, but all you can see is a patchwork of colors from the ramshackle umbrellas they use to protect their tables. Having just rained, the view was particularly vibrant and stunning. As far as the eye can see you have a collection of different awnings and tarps strung together.

Hong Kong is filled with such scenes of unintentional beauty.

The city has a way with wringing texture from man-made objects that decay gracefully. Worn away over time, they exist on a plane that is neither man-made nor natural, but somewhere in between.

I’ve taken some amazing photos before of things like the scraped up interior of an old industrial elevator, or paint peeling on a ferry pier. If you have an eye for it, you can’t help but spot this kind of unintentional art around the city.

Occasionally Hong Kong artists, photographers and filmmakers tap this phenomenon and you can spot it in their better work.

1 Comment

  • Nice post. HK is beautiful. I have so many pics of seemingly innocent random moments that revealed to be small art stills.

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