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Wan Chai Visual Archive
For Alvin Yip and Carl Gouw, sentiments for a traditional district led to the development of a community-focused project. “I think we have a general love of Hong Kong culture,” says Yip, curator of the Wan Chai Visual Archive. “You could say that Wan Chai is a very classic Hong Kong neighbourhood, with all its temples, all its different types of privatised developments.”
Yip, who is also an assistant professor at Hong Kong Poly U’s School of Design, believes his affinity to Wan Chai is shared by many Hongkongers. “People come to this neighbourhood to escape Central and Soho,” he says.
Gouw, managing director of Goldig Investment Group and director of The Archive, describes the project’s purpose: “The Archive is about understanding the neighbourhood and the history of the area. This is where it differs from places like the Fringe Club, where the exhibitions have nothing to do with the local community.”
The Archive is not just about bringing art to the community – it’s also focused on bringing the community to the art. “We have workshops and exhibitions, and people are invited to participate,” Yip says.
He explains how participants were taught how to make and use pinhole cameras: “During Chinese New Year we pretended we were back in the 60s, when families would have to go to a film studio to take photos.” Some of these photographs are now part of The Archive’s first exhibition.
Other highlights include Mute Works, an installation of strings that display the patterns of a sign-language conversation, and Urban Narratives, which is the result of an international creative workshop on iPhone apps. What these art pieces have in common are their inherent links to Wan Chai. “The Archive is about capturing the spirit of the neighbourhood and its changes,” says Gouw. The duo aim to host rotating exhibitions and workshops at The Archive for years to come.
Both Yip and Gouw have personally invested their time and money in the non-profit initiative. Gouw’s company provides the physical space for The Archive, rent-free. “This is to do something that is outside the parameters of ‘just business’,” Gouw says. Similarly, Yip, who has curated exhibitions across Europe, is not paid for the time he spends working with The Archive.
Yip stresses the project is more than simply an art exhibition. “We call it a community art studio.” Gouw says. “The Archive [has been created] to engage the community, the neighbourhood. To make them participate and understand the cultural changes that are brought about by urban development.”
Isak Ladegaard
5 – 9 Hing Wan St, Wan Chai, www.visualarchive.hk. Free admission. Until July 31.
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