Touted by the maestro of graphic design, Kan Tai-keung, as ‘up-and-coming’, Hung Lam is no stranger to success. Having worked for Kan and Lau before establishing CoDesign Ltd with another former employee of Kan’s, Lam’s works have been displayed at the V&A Museum in London as well as the Hong Kong Heritage Museum. As a firm believer in lateral thinking of the creative kind, Lam says design is more than what’s on paper at the end of the day and professes that you have to have “one foot in the business boat, the other in society” and that “the challenge is how you differ from all these people in this multi-platform world.” Phyllis Lui caught up with the talented young graphic artist to discuss everything from the unstoppable rise of technology and the Buddhist influence to just what is ‘quintessentially Hong Kong’.

Why did you choose this particular field?
Back then, technology and communication weren’t as developed. I feel that now, if you pick design, you have a very good idea of what design is about since it’s so widely publicised. I am not actually that old, but back then there weren’t that many design schools, only PolyU and the two private ones. At the start I liked to draw and think outside the box, then I studied design. Once I understood the base I didn’t feel that the private institutions provide a rich design education. Most of what I know about design was from the days working at Kan’s.

Does the work you do feel like a hobby more than a career?
Passion. The passion for design, I don’t feel like it’s a job. Even back when I was working at Kan’s I worked very late and sometimes I would bring work home, even though it’s a bad habit. You need rest to get inspired. But back then, I felt there was so much to learn and so much I didn’t know that I really loved going to work. I really enjoy coming to work every day.

You mentioned the advancement of technology and communication. What effect do you think these will have on the Hong Kong design scene?
Put more simply, a lot of people in Hong Kong follow trends. And so-called trendy has overtones of the West. At an international exhibition, when you lay everything out, you can’t tell which one is from Hong Kong and other places. Some say to me “Don’t take such a narrow view, you should be more global.” While I think that’s true, I am personally more of the belief that your lifestyle is parallel with your work. That is, I grew up here. There should be something unique to me, whether it is culture or history.

Does Hong Kong influence the work you produce?
Graphic design, and any type of creativity, requires you to use what’s inside you and present it to other people visually. What you absorb is your surroundings. You naturally reproduce that style of work. Mine is a bit simpler, I don’t follow trends, but that doesn’t mean that I am not up to date with them.

Is there anything you see as quintessentially representing Hong Kong?
“Fast, beautiful, good.” Said nicely, it’d be efficiency, but really it’s not just that. They want it fast and they want it good. Like the Octopus card. A lot of creations are due to the pace of Hong Kong, people and rhythm of the city. I don’t really see the junk or other more typical emblems as representative of Hong Kong, more that they are how the government wants Hong Kong to be perceived. Instead, it’s more about the Hong Kong spirit for me. This has its pros and cons; a love-hate relationship. The rush means that everything is quite superficial. In terms of graphic design, there aren’t many companies who would do things that aren’t associated with money. It’s all cyclical, and in a city that has such a high standard of living, it has created this batch of people who are all about “fast, beautiful, good.”

What other interests do you have and how have these influenced your work?
It’s not so much Buddhism but the study of Buddhism. I believe that the Buddhist view of the world is quite similar to viewing it through design. I say this because Buddhist practices don’t tell you straight away the moral of the story, but rather from the sides, so you work it out for yourself. Design-wise, in a visual, I wouldn’t write out “This is an apple” as that’s boring, but “This is a lemon” with a visual of an apple, then the rigs in your brain turn and you realise that it’s all just labels.

What role do you feel design plays in society?
I see the role of design as being quite powerful and positive to solve some of the problems in society.

Are there any key turning points in the span of your career?
Of course. And it is during these turning points that I’ve produced works which have raised my profile. The most recent case being the green movement – slightly shamefully, we’ve only begun to touch on this. People are seeing the green movement as being a trend – but actually adopting it into practice, it’s three or four times more difficult.

Read the stories of the other up-and-coming stars in their respective fields

Michael Leung, product designer

Annette Chu, interior designer

Cary Lau, architect