Hong Kong Ghost Signs Book: Summoning Characters from our City’s Past

  • One of many old photo studio Ghost Signs in Island East, this one for 温莎攝影 (wan1 saa1 sip3 jing2 'Windsor Photography Studio') was captured in Sai Wan Ho in September 2022. Perhaps due to the area’s working class history, cameras could have been an impractical luxury for most, whereby a visit to a photo studio may have been an exciting occasion for a couple or a family.
  • A Ghost Sign in Jordan, captured in April 2023.
  • The Hing Wai Ice & Cold Storage Co. Ltd. building in Aberdeen, with a faded Ghost Sign of Good Companion Cigarettes. February 2, 2023.

This project investigates Hong Kong’s unique signage landscape by documenting “Ghost Signs”—fading historical markers that preserve Chinese calligraphic scripts, local sign-painting craftsmanship, and collective memories. By archiving these remnants of the city’s “brilliant calligraphy” and “vibrant colours,” the initiative aims to safeguard a visual narrative of the urban past.

This project investigates Hong Kong’s unique signage landscape by documenting “Ghost Signs”—fading historical markers that preserve Chinese calligraphic scripts, local sign-painting craftsmanship, and collective memories. By archiving these remnants of the city’s “brilliant calligraphy” and “vibrant colours,” the initiative aims to safeguard a visual narrative of the urban past.

Adopting an urban archaeology perspective to examine Hong Kong’s Chinese and English signage, the team has documented hundreds of Ghost Signs, fostering public awareness through exhibitions, presentations, walking tours, and an interactive web application. The project continues to develop an expanding online archive of Hong Kong Ghost Signs, enriching the collective memory of the city’s past and present urban landscape by providing users with the locations of extant signs and tools for documentation. The primary objective is to expand this database and broaden its audience reach while ensuring quality control through “in-depth research, archival images, and professional translations.” By facilitating the simultaneous growth of the archive and its user community, the initiative preserves a unique record of a disappearing way of life.

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2025
Grantee: Billy Potts, Ben Marans

Billy Potts, Research & Writing
Billy has two decades of research and design experience and seven years of concentrated writing experience on Hong Kong culture, with a growing network of artists, designers, calligraphers, advocates, and enthusiasts. He is the author of Henry Steiner’s Hong Kong (2024), which follows the story of Hong Kong through the influential design work of the Austro-American graphic designer who brought the principles taught to him by Paul Rand to Asia, laying a foundation for the look of modern Hong Kong and beyond.

Ben Marans, Photography & Photo Editing
Ben Marans is a professional photographer based in Hong Kong. Since 2018, he has been documenting the city with a camera, a strong sense of curiosity, and an empathetic approach to connecting with his subjects. Ben is an accredited member of the Hong Kong Press Photographers' Association and he teaches photography to undergrads at Hong Kong Baptist University.