Project

This interactive workshop places the art of paper and bamboo tying in the wider context of Hong Kong’s role as cultural hub in the world. Through hands on learning of the craft through the making of a lantern, participants will experience a folk tradition which has served by bolster the link between the global Chinese world and Hong Kong through community, folk tradition and cross-cultural exchange.

Billy Potts’ project investigates Hong Kong’s role as a cultural hub from the late nineteenth century to the present, focusing on the craft of ligation arts and the manufacture and export of Chinese devotional objects—most notably parading dragons. Tracing how these crafts travelled with, and helped sustain, connections across the global Chinese diaspora, it examines the material and ritual networks through which Hong Kong mediated cultural exchange between South China and overseas Chinese communities. Building on this historical account, the project considers how such heritage might inform contemporary civic branding and identity, shaping the ways modern Hong Kong represents itself within China and to the wider world.

Dates and Times:
6 and 7 Nov, 15:00 – 18:30
15 Nov, 13:00 – 16:30

Location: Haw Par Villa

Billy Potts
Project Leader

Haw Par Villa
Collaborator