How Epidemics Shaped Hong Kong, Part I: The “Fatal City”

Christopher DewolfApril 12, 2021

Today's Hong Kong is a reflection of the epidemics it has faced. In the first of a two-part article, we look at the legacy of the plague, malaria and the flu....

HeritageHistoryUrbanism0 Comments589 views 010 min read

Hong Kong’s Wild Animals, Part V: The Asian Koel, A Sign of Spring

Christopher DewolfMarch 17, 2021

The annual mating season of the Asian koel, with its unmistakable, lonely song, signals the arrival of spring in Hong Kong....

CultureNature0 Comments1779 views 04 min read

Hong Kong’s Wild Animals, Part IV: Burmese Pythons

Christopher DewolfMarch 4, 2021

Why you shouldn't be scared of Hong Kong's largest snakes....

CultureNature0 Comments671 views 06 min read

Forgotten Hong Kong Icon: Olympia Graeco-Egyptian Coffee – Fresh Roasted Since 1927

Christopher DewolfFebruary 26, 2021

How a small family-run roaster has fuelled Hong Kong with fresh coffee for nearly a century....

A Little BreakCultureFoodPeoplePortraitsWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments907 views 09 min read

Inside the Art Collection William and Lavina Lim Are Donating to M+

Christopher DewolfJanuary 29, 2021

An important collection of art will soon find new life at M+....

ArtInterviewsPeople0 Comments706 views 011 min read

Why Nobody Knew About the Spectacular Bishop Hill Reservoir

Christopher DewolfJanuary 22, 2021

How a quirky hill became the latest flashpoint in Hong Kong's fight to save its heritage....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistorySmall Stories & Secret Stories0 Comments3352 views 111 min read

Hong Kong’s Wild Animals, Part III: Barking Deer

Christopher DewolfDecember 16, 2020

Shy and anxious, one of Hong Kong’s most distinctive creatures is known for its strange cry....

CultureNature0 Comments1773 views 05 min read

What the M+ Archigram Archive Means for Hong Kong

Christopher DewolfNovember 26, 2020

Hong Kong’s museum of visual culture is beginning to explore the archive of an influential British architecture collective....

ArchitectureDesignInterviewsPeople0 Comments543 views 08 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part IX: Kom Tong Hall, the Sun Yat-sen Museum

Christopher DewolfNovember 19, 2020

Sun Yat-sen never visited the building that houses a museum dedicated to him – but there are plenty of other reasons why this grand structure is worth a visit....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistorySmall Stories & Secret Stories0 Comments676 views 08 min read

Asia Art Archive at 20: How Claire Hsu Built a Home For Asia’s Own Stories

Christopher DewolfOctober 29, 2020

Claire Hsu was just 24 when she founded the Asia Art Archive. Two decades later, she reflects on what it has achieved – and what's to come....

ArtPeoplePortraitsVideo artVisual Art0 Comments2073 views 014 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part VIII: Shanghai Street Shophouses

Christopher DewolfOctober 15, 2020

Hong Kong's largest intact cluster of shophouses has been preserved and restored – but only in part. ...

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryInspring ItinerariesUrbanismWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments587 views 010 min read

Two Weeks in Quarantine With Photographer Wing Shya

Christopher DewolfOctober 9, 2020

A series of unexpected detours turned Wing Shya into one of Hong Kong's most renowned creative talents....

A Little BreakCinemaCulturePeoplePortraitsWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments511 views 014 min read

Sir Catchick Paul Chater: How a Calcutta Orphan Became Hong Kong’s Most Important Man

Christopher DewolfSeptember 30, 2020

Few people shaped Hong Kong as much as Paul Chater, and yet he remains little known to most Hongkongers...

Big StoriesHistoryPeoplePortraits0 Comments1251 views 012 min read

Hong Kong’s Wild Creatures, Part II: Tigers

Christopher DewolfSeptember 22, 2020

Tigers once terrified Hong Kong villagers and city-dwellers alike. What happened to them?...

Culture0 Comments188 views 07 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part VII: The Pedder Building

Christopher DewolfAugust 27, 2020

The Pedder Building is known as a hub for art galleries, but that is just the latest chapter in a long life....

ArchitectureArtDesignHistoryInspring ItinerariesUrbanismUsual Suspects & LandmarksWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments1522 views 08 min read

Hong Kong’s Wild Creatures, Part I: Pangolins

Christopher DewolfJuly 30, 2020

Pangolins have managed to survive in Hong Kong's hills for thousands of years – but now they are critically endangered....

CultureNature0 Comments1196 views 05 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part VI: Green Hub, the Old Tai Po Police Station

Christopher DewolfJuly 22, 2020

Britain's first colonial outpost in the New Territories has become a venue that promotes eco-friendly living....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistorySmall Stories & Secret Stories0 Comments1151 views 06 min read

No Friend of the Government: The Story of Hong Kong’s First Rabble-Rousing Newspaper

Christopher DewolfJuly 2, 2020

How William Tarrant turned The Friend of China into a weapon against government corruption and misdeeds....

CultureHeritageHistoryPeopleSmall Stories & Secret Stories0 Comments722 views 09 min read

Into the Wild: Robert Ferguson is Documenting Hong Kong’s Wild Creatures

Christopher DewolfJune 23, 2020

Learn more about Hong Kong's wildlife, one step at a time....

CultureNature0 Comments1012 views 06 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part V: The HKU Main Building

Christopher DewolfJune 11, 2020

Inspired by the civic universities of England, the University of Hong Kong opened in 1911 with a distinctive central building that contains its architectural DNA....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryUsual Suspects & Landmarks0 Comments2379 views 08 min read

In the Midst of a Pandemic, Walk DVRC Wants to Give Hongkongers More Space

Christopher DewolfMay 20, 2020

Cities around the world are responding to Covid-19 by giving pedestrians and cyclists more space. Why not Hong Kong?...

DesignHistoryUrbanism0 Comments672 views 010 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part IV: The Western Market

Christopher DewolfMay 6, 2020

Hong Kong's oldest surviving market building has a history even older than its Edwardian façade....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryUrbanismUsual Suspects & LandmarksWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments2194 views 08 min read

Tao Ho: Hong Kong’s Underrated Design Legend

Christopher DewolfApril 29, 2020

Although he has faded from public view, the legacy of the man who designed the Hong Kong Arts Centre and the bauhinia flag lives on....

ArchitectureDesignPeoplePortraits0 Comments1139 views 011 min read

The Coronavirus in Hong Kong: Together in Solitude

Christopher DewolfApril 15, 2020

Hong Kong is once again feeling the brunt of Covid-19. Where do we go from here?...

ArtHistoryPeoplePhotography0 Comments4620 views 08 min read

A Hong Kong Artist Explores What It Means To Be Chinese in the UK

Christopher DewolfApril 2, 2020

In a residency with the Centre for Contemporary Chinese Art, artist Dorothy Cheung is exploring the layers of identity in Manchester's Chinese community...

ArtPeoplePortraits0 Comments553 views 09 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part III: 1881 Heritage, the Malling of History

Christopher DewolfMarch 26, 2020

Why a project that saved a historic marine police complex is roundly criticised...

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryUsual Suspects & Landmarks0 Comments1971 views 010 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part II: An Explosive History at the Asia Society

Christopher DewolfFebruary 25, 2020

How a Victorian-era explosives magazine was transformed into a cultural centre....

ArchitectureArtDesignHeritageHistoryInspring ItinerariesSmall Stories & Secret StoriesWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments1692 views 010 min read

Hong Kong in Vancouver – Part IV: A Canadian-Style Cha Chaan Teng Inside a Lumberyard

Christopher DewolfFebruary 4, 2020

The Northern Café has been open since 1949, but it took a family from Hong Kong to unearth its full potential...

CultureFoodInspring ItinerariesWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments1382 views 16 min read

Hong Kong’s Colonial Heritage, Part I: The Ghost of Murray House

Christopher DewolfJanuary 30, 2020

The first in a new series on pre-World War II architecture looks at how one of Hong Kong's oldest colonial buildings became an example of how not to conserve heritage...

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistorySmall Stories & Secret Stories0 Comments7032 views 07 min read

Hong Kong’s Industrial History, Part X: How Plastic Flowers Built a Global Metropolis

Christopher DewolfJanuary 16, 2020

Hong Kong once made plastic products that were shipped around the world. What's left of that history?...

DesignHeritageHistoryProduct Design0 Comments241 views 08 min read

Inside Dragon Garden, the Hidden Paradise That Captures Hong Kong’s Spirit

Christopher DewolfJanuary 9, 2020

How one man built up a unique cultural landscape that was narrowly saved from destruction....

A Little BreakHeritageHistorySmall Stories & Secret StoriesWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments9905 views 09 min read

Hong Kong’s Modern Heritage, Part XII: Breeze Blocks

Christopher DewolfDecember 19, 2019

Air conditioning transformed Hong Kong – but there are still reminders of a breezier era....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryUrbanism0 Comments1852 views 05 min read

Fighting Until the End: Hong Kong’s Vietnamese Refugees

Christopher DewolfDecember 12, 2019

Hong Kong still hasn't reckoned with the painful experience of the Vietnamese refugees who fled to its shores. ...

Big StoriesHistory0 Comments5986 views 013 min read

Forgotten Hong Kong Icon: The Better ‘Ole, a Classic Pub 72 Years in the Making

Christopher DewolfDecember 4, 2019

A beloved Hong Kong pub has been in the same family for three generations....

A Little BreakCultureFoodPeoplePortraitsWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments2663 views 010 min read

Hong Kong’s Modern Heritage, Part XI: The Bank of China Tower

Christopher DewolfNovember 27, 2019

Three generations of work by the Pei family underpins Hong Kong's most famous skyscraper....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryPeopleUsual Suspects & Landmarks0 Comments1433 views 19 min read

Hong Kong by Foot: A New Generation of Tours is Immersed in Street Life

Christopher DewolfNovember 20, 2019

Walking tours are delving deep into Hong Kong's daily life and culture....

A Little BreakWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments900 views 08 min read

Hong Kong’s First Gin Tastes Like Ginseng and Cinnamon

Christopher DewolfNovember 15, 2019

A visit inside Hong Kong's first distillery to open in more than 40 years, where Steven Newton is making gin, vodka, whisky and rum....

CultureFood0 Comments1187 views 00 min read

What’s Happening With M+? An Update on Hong Kong’s Museum of Visual Culture

Christopher DewolfNovember 6, 2019

A museum with global ambitions is finally on track to open in Hong Kong. ...

ArtInspring ItinerariesWhere To Go, To Play, To Rest0 Comments1882 views 012 min read

Hong Kong’s Modern Heritage, Part X: Corner Buildings

Christopher DewolfOctober 31, 2019

Well liked but disappearing quickly, Hong Kong's corner buildings embrace the street....

ArchitectureDesignHeritageHistoryUrbanism0 Comments5762 views 27 min read

Ed van der Elsken at F11: Dive Into Hong Kong the Way it Was

Christopher DewolfOctober 23, 2019

A remarkable collection of Hong Kong photos from 1959 makes its way back home....

ArtHeritageHistoryPhotography0 Comments5241 views 06 min read