Grant Recipients from the 2025 April Grant cycle:
“Conversations with Architects: Recording Oral Histories of Our Generation of Architects” by Lai Shun Lam of the Heritage & Conservation Committee (H&CC) Core Team of HKIA, is a documentation and publication of architects in Hong Kong. Through discussing changes of architecture over decades, the project prompts reflection on the relationship between Hong Kong architecture and social changes. This collection of oral histories will act as a record for future generations and provide an alternative pluralistic view of the architectural profession across generations.
“Tung Chung (un)rooted: Afterlives of Tung Chung Agricultural Cooperative Society” by Stephanie Kwong, Silvia Tse and Christy Leung, is a community engagement programme and documentation of Tung Chung land-sea networks during the 1950s-90s. As North Lantau’s midway point, Tung Chung thrived on marginal farmland and fisheries—its valleys, coastal soils, and sheltered waters sustaining uniquely integrated land-sea networks—until the 1990s, airport development abruptly urbanized its landscape. This project aims to preserve the at-risked agrarian memory and agricultural networks and to honor their social welfare legacy, while future-proofing and forging new ones amid urban transitions.
“The World of Lines” by Rui An Ho, is a research project examining over hundred years history of textile industry between Pearl River Delta region and the Yangtze River Delta regions. Focusing on the shifting relations between labor, technology and capital within and between the two regions, this inter-disciplinary study explores the industrial capitalism in China and its subsequent displacement. The project establishes textiles as a valuable lens through which to study the related, yet distinct visual cultures of the two river delta regions, expands the view of “textile research” that goes beyond investigating everyday clothing to the representation of textiles across various media and its impact upon the city’s built environment.
“Hong Kong Ghost Signs Book: Summoning Characters from our City's Past” by Ben Marans and Billy Potts, is a publication that documents and preserves Hong Kong Ghost Signs as cultural heritage. Expanding on the previous Design Trust Seed Grant research, walking tours, exhibitions and soon-to-be launched interactive website application, the project brings together Henry Steiner to serve as a meaningful exchange on local visual culture between generations of Hong Kong designers. Through oral histories and biographies of sign makers, shopkeepers and community historians, the book honors the Chinese calligraphic scripts and local sign painting crafts, and vessels for the collective memories of Hong Kong and a reminder of their importance in the city’s cultural heritage.
“Island Catalogue Publication: Together with All” by Tang Chi Chun, is a research publication featuring spatial analysis and geographic information of over 260 islands in Hong Kong. The project expands upon the previous Design Trust Seed Grant project “Islands of Hong Kong” research into publication. Through displaying atlas information along with stories from individuals connected to islands, the research serves as a reflection on our urban experience. The book will be an introductory guide for the public, to explore islands in Hong Kong and foster a deeper understand of Hong Kong’s islands while connecting people through design, ecology and shared experiences.
“ZINE YO! Fest 2025” by Forrest Lau, is a one-month event of local publishing, print art, DIY culture, featuring a zine market, exhibitions, workshops, talks, and a virtual zine party that serves as a key platform for diverse creators and artist-run initiatives across Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area, and East/Southeast Asia. The programme features hands-on workshops in risograph, bookbinding, and zine-making. It also includes panel discussions with practicing zine-makers, and an innovative virtual zine party that bridges global creators in a digital fair. The project amplifies marginalized voices, and alternative narratives by supporting emerging collectives, independent creators, and artist-run publishing initiatives.
“Oyster Future: Archiving Diverse Perspectives on Oyster Heritage in the Pearl River Delta” by Ting Wang and Mengxiao Tian, reimagines oyster heritage in the Pearl River Delta by exploring its overlooked roles in architecture, ecology, and material culture through cross-disciplinary archiving, contributing to new ways of valuing local natural resources in future sustainable design. By integrating design, vernacular knowledge, and environmental concerns, this project not only reclaims neglected use of natural materials in design but also contributes to the new materialist turn in critical heritage studies. It offers a new model for inter-disciplinary resources management and deepens our understanding of oysters as agents of both ecological and cultural resilience in the Greater Bay Area.
“Wall-Fill Island Project” by Jze Yi Kuo, is a wall installation project, archiving selected waste materials in Cheung Chau, an island of Hong Kong. This design-built educational programme in collaboration with the local community to raise public awareness regarding waste reduction through a series of workshops. By transforming two to three different types of waste into a wall structure at nature conservation sites in Cheung Chau, it seeks to engage the community in sustainable practices which enhancing the local environment.
“Revisiting Choi Hung Estate: Looking back for the Future” by Don Hong, Martin Lau, Christine Lee and Sarah Chan, is an exhibition exploring the historical significance of Choi Hung Estate through contributions from various stakeholders. Choi Hung Estate was the first self-contained estate in Hong Kong completed between 1962 and 1964 but faces redevelopment between 2028 to 2029. By presenting photo and moving image installations, archival materials and consolidated historical findings from its design records, oral history and interviews from local residents, as well as open engagement at interactive breakout spaces. This exhibition reveals the connections between architecture and well-being across generations, and explore how Choi Hung Estate as a symbol in Hong Kong architecture and visual culture has mirrored and continues to drive the dynamism of Hong Kong.
“Forest for All” by Lily Zhang and Wataru Shinji, is a Hong Kong native species forest designed to heal and restore Tao Fong Shan’s degraded mountaintop ecosystem destroyed by previous human activity, recover the damaged mountain’s biodiversity, and empower Hong Kong people to connect with nature through learning about and caring for our shared environment. Through this curated, long-term environmental education initiative and sustainable inclusive community project, participants have the opportunity to plant trees and contribute to local biodiversity for future generations.
“Scaffolds and Memory: Bamboo and the Disappearing City” by Raffaella Endrizzi, is a photographic and oral history documentation project that explores the architectural and cultural significance of bamboo scaffolding in Hong Kong. The visual essay captures how bamboo structures veil and reveal the city—symbolizing impermanence, craftsmanship, and transformation. Interviews and portraits of Sifus (master scaffolders) and semi-skilled workers preserve lived knowledge passed down through generations, offering insight into the challenges of sustaining traditional practices in a rapidly modernizing city. The research also investigates the sources and types of bamboo used, fluctuations in pricing and supply, and how these material flows reflect broader regional exchange systems. Together, these narratives and material analyses offer a layered understanding of the bamboo scaffolding trade. This project forms part of a forthcoming book and supports community efforts to apply for UNESCO recognition of bamboo scaffolding as intangible cultural heritage.
