This March and April, we’re gearing up for another round of neon events! Join us for three lively discussions about the past, present and future of neon in Hong Kong in partnership with three exciting venues.
Once the neon capital of the world, Hong Kong’s neon signs were a unique fusion of traditional Chinese culture and international influences. Now most of these signs have disappeared, despite their iconic status. Find out why — and what lies ahead for neon.
______________________________________________
A story about Hong Kong’s most iconic light
Hong Kong was once the world’s ultimate neon city. Now most of its neon signs have disappeared, but there’s still life in the light. Over 330 lushly illustrated pages, Neon Is Not Dead traces the past, present and future of neon in Hong Kong. Explore the intersecting arts of neon tube bending and Chinese calligraphy that give Hong Kong such a unique look. Find out why so many neon signs disappeared so quickly. And meet the conservationists, craftspeople and business owners who are doing more than keeping neon alive, here at home and abroad: they’re charting a new path for its future.
This deeply researched book vividly captures neon’s magic and why Hong Kong remains its brightest star. Proudly sponsored by Tetra Neon Exchange in the first print run, the publication retains full editorial independence.
Get your copy here!
If you still don’t have a copy of Neon Is Not Dead: The Future of a Hong Kong Icon, you’ll get 5% off by purchasing it at these events!
______________________________________________
March and April Talks: Round Two
Hong Kong Neon — The Past, Present and Future
_____
➤ 17 March: Ping Pong 129 (English)
Join us for a lively discussion about the past, present and future of neon in Hong Kong! Once the neon capital of the world, Hong Kong’s neon signs were a unique fusion of traditional Chinese culture and international influences. Now most neon signs have disappeared, despite their iconic status. Find out why — and what lies ahead for neon.
Christopher DeWolf, editor and co-author of Neon Is Not Dead: The Future of a Hong Kong Icon, will lead the discussion at Ping Pong 129, our romantically neon-lit partner venue. Joining him will be photographer William Furniss and neon expert Ken Fung, co-founder of @streetsignhk, to talk about everything that makes Hong Kong neon unique.
Don’t miss out: it’s your chance to find out how neon is being sustained and celebrated by a growing community of people. This living light may have dimmed but is far from going dark.
When: 17 March 2026, 17:30–18:30
Where: Ping Pong 129, L/G, 129 Second Street, Sai Ying Pun
Free; register here
_____
➤ 23 March: Lasvit Lounge (English)
Join us for a lively discussion about the past, present and future of neon in Hong Kong inside the glittering space of Lasvit — our event partner and the Hong Kong outpost of the renowned Czech designer and manufacturer of bespoke glass and lighting installations. Once the neon capital of the world, Hong Kong’s neon signs were a unique fusion of traditional Chinese culture and international influences. Now most of these signs have disappeared, despite their iconic status. Find out why — and what lies ahead for neon.
The evening will begin with an introduction by Klára Jurčová, Czechia’s consul general in Hong Kong and a strong supporter of arts and culture. Next, Christopher DeWolf, editor and co-author of Neon Is Not Dead: The Future of a Hong Kong Icon, will lead a discussion with photographer William Furniss and @streetsignhk founders Ken Fung and Kevin Mak about everything that makes Hong Kong neon unique.
Don’t miss out: it’s your chance to find out how neon is being sustained and celebrated by a growing community of people. This living light may have dimmed but is far from going dark.
When: 23 March 2026, 18:30–20:00
Where: Lasvit Lounge, 3/F, 208 Johnston, 206-212 Johnston Road, Wan Chai
By invitation only
_____
➤ 25 April: Beyond the Bubble Studio (Mandarin)
On Saturday 25 April, join us for a lively chat in Mandarin at our partner venue, Beyond the Bubble Studio. Kecheng Fang, Associate Professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, will lead a discussion about Neon Is Not Dead with Zolima’s Chinese editor and writer Sue Ng, neon artist Jive Lau and Ken Fung and Kevin Mak, architects and founders of the @streetsignHK conservation initiative. Together, they will explore the stories, creativity and cultural significance behind Hong Kong’s iconic neon signs.
When: 25 April 2026, 15:00–16:30
Where: Beyond the Bubble Studio, 13B, 44-52 Wai Ching Street, Jordan
HK$80 per person; register here
______________________________________________
Join our first round of talks in January!
_____
➤ 13 January: G.O.D. & Ho Lan Jeng (English)
Meet the writers and neon visionaries behind the second Zolima Culture Guide, Neon Is Not Dead, at our launch event! The evening begins with a casual panel discussion featuring our editor and writer Christopher DeWolf, neon artist Jive Lau — who designed and created G.O.D.’s neon sign — and G.O.D. founder Douglas Young.
Afterwards, join us for drinks and a relaxed conversation at Ho Lan Jeng, whose story is also featured in Neon Is Not Dead, with our writers Elizabeth Kerr, Billy Potts, Sue Ng and Cardin Chan; photographers William Furniss and May James; along with Ken Fung and Kevin Mak, the architects and founders of local conservation group @streetsignHK.
When and where: 13 January 2026
18:30–19:30 — Panel discussion at G.O.D. on 6 D’Aguilar Street, Central
19:30–21:00 — Sharing session with drinks at Ho Lan Jeng, 2/F, 29 Wyndham Street, Central
Register here
*Registration closes on 12 January at 17:30
_____
➤ 15 January: Foreign Correspondents’ Club (English)
At this exclusive members’ lunch talk, our editor Christopher DeWolf and neon conservationist Cardin Chan will guide you through the stories, craftsmanship and cultural significance of Hong Kong’s neon signs, revealing their enduring impact on the city’s streetscape.
When: 15 January 2026, 12:30–14:00
Where: FCC, 2 Lower Albert Road, Central
Registration for FCC members only
_____
➤ 17 January: Eslite Bookshop (Cantonese)
Explore the stories behind Neon Is Not Dead in a panel discussion featuring PolyU professor Brian Kwok, neon conservationist Cardin Chan, Tai Ping Koon restaurant owner Andrew Chui and writer Sue Ng, as they take you on a journey through neon’s place in Hong Kong’s cultural history.
When: 17 January 2026, 11:30–12:30
Where: 9/F, Hysan Place, 500 Hennessy Road, Causeway Bay
No registration required
_____
➤ 19 January: Parenthèses Bookshop (English)
In this evening talk, our editor Christopher DeWolf joins photographer and author Alexandra Unrein to explore the intersection between neon, public space and urban expression, and how these visual languages continue to evolve through Hong Kong’s streets.
When: 19 January 2026, 18:00–19:00
Where: 14–24 Wellington Street, Central
Register here
_____
➤ 22 January: The Hari Hong Kong (part of The Hari Chronicles) (English)
As part of The Hari Chronicles, filmmaker and photographer Wing Shya joins film writer Elizabeth Kerr in a panel talk moderated by our editor and writer Christopher DeWolf, to explore the role of neon in Hong Kong cinema and its presence in some of the city’s most iconic films.
When: 22 January 2026, 18:00–19:30
Where: The Hari Hotel, 1/F, 330 Lockhart Road
By invitation only
_____
➤ 27 January: DX Design Hub (English)
Join us for a special talk about the future of neon. M+ curator of visual culture Tina Pang and Tetra Neon Exchange co-founder David Rule will join PolyU neon scholar Brian Kwok in a lively discussion moderated by Neon Is Not Dead editor and co-author Christopher DeWolf. It’s also a chance for you to check out some vintage neon signs on display in the Luminous Neon exhibition!
When: 27 January 2026, 18:30–19:30
Where: DX Design Hub, 280 Tung Chau Street, Sham Shui Po
Register here
_____________
About the speakers
Alexandra Unrein
Alexandra Unrein, aka streetartorama, is a street art photographer, tour guide, and author who first set foot in Hong Kong over 15 years ago. Since then she has immersed herself in the vibrant world of street art, conducting personal interviews and capturing the essence of the city through her lens. In 2018, she initiated tours for the city’s street art festival, HKwalls, and ever since has been curating and running numerous street art tours for her boutique tour guide company Wanderlust Walks Hong Kong.
Andrew Chui
Andrew Chui is the fifth-generation heir and managing director of Hong Kong’s historic Tai Ping Koon Restaurant. After graduating from California State University with a degree in Business Administration, he returned to Hong Kong to help manage the restaurant, dedicating himself to preserving its century-old history and traditional flavours. He has also authored books sharing the restaurant’s rich history and culinary heritage.
Billy Potts
Billy Potts is a Hong Kong-born writer and designer whose work offers a unique perspective shaped by his lifelong immersion in the city’s cultural landscape. As a writer for Zolima, he has explored the city’s hidden stories and design heritage, including traditional crafts, calligraphy and more. Potts’ in-depth design and research study on defunct and abandoned signage, Hong Kong Ghost Signs, has been backed by both the Design Trust and Lord Wilson Heritage Trust. Through his design studio Handsome Co., Potts has worked on projects involving Hong Kong’s iconic trams, the classic Camel flask and other renowned local brands including Cathay Pacific, Ascot Chang and more. Potts has a Chinese-English background and is fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.
Brian Kwok
Brian Kwok’s design and academic interests cover information design, user-centered design, and visual culture in art and design. An Associate Professor at the School of Design of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, he is passionate about observing the streetscapes and researching visual ethnography, with particular interests in the cityscape and cultural landscape of Hong Kong. Since 2015, Kwok has been devoted to recording the diversified cultural faces of Hong Kong through text, photographs and videos. His scope of research started by covering local neon signs before gradually extending to calligraphy in public spaces. He has published several books on the topic.
Cardin Chan
Zolima contributor Cardin Chan has been spearheading Hong Kong cultural conservation, including the preservation of neon signs, for the past eight years. During her tenure at Tetra Neon Exchange as general manager, she formulated and implemented the strategies to conserve HK neon, including saving around 80 heritage neon signs from our city. With roles like a curator and project director, she helped put together their public exhibitions, such as Vital Signs at Tai Kwun in 2023. In 2024, Chan set up her own cultural agency, The Indispensible Hong Kong, aiming at elevating and expanding her scope of work by continuing on her independent neon conservation journey and applying what she has learnt to other cultural aspects.
Christopher DeWolf
Christopher DeWolf has been writing about Hong Kong for more than 20 years, earning a reputation as one of the city’s leading journalists on architecture, design, history and culture. The author of Borrowed Spaces: Life Between the Cracks of Modern Hong Kong (Penguin, 2017), DeWolf has been Zolima CityMag’s managing editor since its launch in 2015, as well as the editor and co-author of the Zolima Culture Guide series of books. His award-winning work has also appeared in other magazines and books around the world including TIME, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, Good Beer Hunting and Spacing.
Douglas Young
Designer and artist Douglas Young is the founder and creative force behind Hong Kong lifestyle brand Goods of Desire, whose designs are inspired by the vibrant culture of the city he calls home. Translated from Cantonese, G.O.D. means “to live better,” and G.O.D. is now a multifaceted brand selling home furnishings, fashion and premium gifts, all with a distinct Asian flair. Young studied to be an architect at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom and worked in London before returning to Hong Kong and forming his own interior design firm. Young is a leading voice regarding design, arts, creativity and entrepreneurship in Hong Kong, and international companies seek his guidance on design and cultural considerations when establishing entities in the city. In 2015, he was named one of the Debrett’s Hong Kong 100 in the field of art, architecture and design.
Elizabeth Kerr
Elizabeth Kerr is a native of Canada who has lived in Hong Kong since 2004. A Bachelor of Fine Arts (Cinema), she has worked in the film industry since finishing university, in production and for non-profit festivals, and she has written about cinema since 2002. Kerr has covered various international film festivals in South Korea, Berlin, Toronto, Shanghai, Tokyo, India and Italy. Along with being Zolima CityMag’s resident film expert, she has been a contributor to trade publications Screen International and The Hollywood Reporter, along with China Daily Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post, KaiFong, RTHK and The Peak. Her media career highlight to date was attending San Diego Comic-Con. (She describes herself as a nerd.) Her work on and off set, combined with a dedication to devouring Hong Kong movies back when they could only be found in the dusty corners of niche video stores.
Jive Lau
Jive Lau is an artist, designer and founder of Kowloneon who has a deep passion for the beauty of neon lights. He has dedicated himself to studying traditional neon sign-making techniques and uses traditional neon signs as a medium for his creations. Lau travelled to Taiwan to learn from master neon signmakers and upon returning to Hong Kong, he established Kowloneon in 2021. Through offering workshops on neon signmaking and creating artworks, he exhibits his works in various institutions and galleries, including Tai Kwun, Hong Kong Ballet, Hong Kong Jockey Club, Fashionally and at international events such as Designblok 2024 in the Czech Republic. He collaborates with different creative units and artists to explore the versatility of neon lights and promote the precious craftsmanship that neon signs represent in Hong Kong.
Kecheng Fang
Kecheng Fang is an Associate Professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research interests include journalism, political communication and digital media. He received his Ph.D. from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining academia, he worked as a political journalist at the Chinese newspaper Southern Weekly. He is also the founder of public engagement projects CNPolitics, Newslab, Sunshine Park and Beyond the Bubble Studio.
Ken Fung
Born and based in Hong Kong, Ken Fung graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and he also studied in Paris as an exchange student. After obtaining a master’s degree in architecture, he began professional practice as an architect at international architecture office OMA in Beijing, later joining its Hong Kong office. His 10-plus year professional experience spans a wide range of types and scales, covering university campus, broadcasting studios, office tower, hotel and private house. He has also participated in a number of architecture exhibitions as part of OMA. Fung also co-founded a Hong Kong signboard heritage conservation platform @streetsignHK in 2017, and he has since been engaged extensively in signboard-streetscape preservation works, exhibitions and community projects.
Kevin Mak
Zolima CityMag contributor Kevin Mak is an urban and architectural photographer, a Hong Kong registered architect, and the co-founder of signboard heritage conservation platform @streetsignHK. He practised as an architect for more than 12 years on international urban and culture related projects. In the past few years, Mak has begun to take a multidisciplinary approach to projects on urban space, street life and aesthetics through exhibition, research, design and photography.
May James
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Zolima CityMag photographer May James is fascinated by people’s emotions and human stories. She has worked with major news agencies and media in Hong Kong and the UK including Reuters, AFP, Bloomberg and Hong Kong Free Press. Her photographs have appeared in The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph and BBC. James’ passion and skill have earned her a nomination for the SOPA Award for “Excellence in Photography” as well as being named among the top Hong Kong street photographers by Time Out. When she’s not taking pictures, she likes exploring different cultures, crafts and the city.
Ryan Ho Kilpatrick
A third-generation Hongkonger with roots on the China Coast and the Canadian Maritimes, Zolima CityMag contributor Ryan Ho Kilpatrick has always been drawn to the ships and sea routes that bind together both his own family’s story and that of his hometown. Ho Kilpatrick’s award-winning work on history, politics, archaeology, culture, and the environment has appeared in The Washington Post, TIME, The Guardian, South China Morning Post, Wall Street Journal, Hong Kong Free Press, The Independent, and many other publications. His stories for Zolima seek to remind readers how much Hong Kong owes to its rich maritime heritage.
Rob Garratt
Zolima CityMag correspondent Rob Garratt is an award-winning freelance journalist who has been writing about arts and culture for close to two decades. His favourite thing to do is profile musicians he admires — interviewees he might brag about include rockstars Noel Gallagher, Carlos Santana and Johnny Marr; classical heavyweights Plácido Domingo and Lang Lang; pop A-listers 50 Cent, Adam Lambert and Tom Jones; jazz legends Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Quincy Jones; and superstar DJs Avicii, David Guetta and Mark Ronson. Garratt previously served as a music editor for Time Out, arts feature writer at UAE broadsheet The National, and music critic for the UK’s Press Association. He still writes regularly about improvised music for We Jazz and All About Jazz, and has penned programme notes for arts organisations including the Hong Kong Arts Festival and Hong Kong Philharmonic.
Sue Ng
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Sue Ng is a bilingual journalist passionate about community stories. Before joining Zolima as staff writer and Chinese editor, Ng worked for major English-language media outlets in Hong Kong, specialising in local affairs, culture, environment, and education. In addition to her professional endeavors, she co-founded the Chinese online publication Stories Not Far, which is dedicated to sharing intercultural and humanitarian issues from around the globe with the Chinese-speaking world.
Tina Pang
Tina Pang is Curator of Hong Kong Visual Culture at M+. She is part of the museum’s founding curatorial team overseeing public programmes, exhibitions and collections related to the visual culture of the city. She led the team behind one of the museum’s inaugural exhibitions, Hong Kong: Here and Beyond, and edited Hong Kong Visual Culture: The M+ Guide published by Thames and Hudson (2021). Recent exhibition projects include Henry Steiner: The Art of Graphic Communication (2024) and Canton Modern: Art and Visual Culture, 1900s–1970s, co-curated with Alan Yeung (2025).
William Furniss
For over three decades, photographer William Furniss has captured the relentless pulse of Hong Kong. Along with regular contributions to Zolima CityMag, he documented Hong Kong’s neon for Neon Is Not Dead. As an established fine art photographer, Furniss is known for his ability to translate the city’s electric energy into unique images. He also captures quieter, intimate moments, focusing on human connection through portraiture.
Wing Shya
Wing Shya works across film, art, design and fashion. After graduating from Emily Carr Institute in Canada, he returned to Hong Kong and founded the award-winning Shya-La-La Workshop, earning wide recognition for his typography and graphic design within Hong Kong’s music and pop culture industries. In 1997, he began a long-running collaboration with filmmaker Wong Kar-wai as still photographer and graphic designer on films including Happy Together, In the Mood for Love and 2046, later expanding into art and fashion films for brands such as Saint Laurent. Shya later emerged as a director, creating music videos, fashion films and two feature films, Hot Summer Days and Love in Space. His fine-art practice has been exhibited internationally, including at Mori Art Museum, Art Basel Miami, the V&A, Kyotographie and major museums in China.