Design Trust Grant Programmes Spotlight

8. 5. 2026

Design Trust is delighted to share a selection of Grant and Fellowship schemes highlights and news, including Design Trust Seed Grant research exhibition and programmes “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate” led by Don Hong, Martin Lau, Christine Lee and Sarah Chan; Design Trust Seed Grant exhibition “just-a-furniture” led by Charis Mok; Design Trust Seed Grant publication “Interior Sketch Series: Cha Chaan Teng in Hong Kong and Macau” led by James Chong and Rolling Books; the showcase and symposium of Design Trust Graphic Archive Fellowship in partnership with HKDI “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”.

Photos of the exhibition “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate”, courtesy of Don Hong.
Photos of the exhibition “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate”, courtesy of Don Hong.
Photos of the exhibition “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate”, courtesy of Don Hong.
Photos of the exhibition “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate”, courtesy of Don Hong.
Photos of the exhibition “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate”, courtesy of Don Hong.

Design Trust Seed Grant research exhibition and programmes “Beyond Rainbows: The Architecture of Choi Hung Estate” led by Don Hong, Martin Lau, Christine Lee and Sarah Chan was presented from March 7th to 22nd 2026, exploring the discursive and architectural significance of Choi Hung Estate, in terms of its unique position in weaving the urban and community fabric of Hong Kong. The exhibition provided a retrospective overview of archival and interpretive materials for Choi Hung Estate including original drawings from P&T and historical reports from the SCMP, along with narrative and artistic presentation of collective memories from interview with more than 40 past and current residents of the estate. The exhibition hosted 15 guided tours and 3 seminars, welcoming more than two thousand visitors from diverse backgrounds, alongside community engagement workshops led by Hong Kong artists Kevin Ling and Eric Tsang, and panel discussions with scholars and architects. As a referential blueprint for high density development in Asia region, the ongoing research on the Choi Hung Estate provides insights to future opportunities of developing resilient and vibrant public housing models with strong community connections.

Photos and poster of the exhibition “just-a-furniture”, courtesy of Charis Mok.
Photos and poster of the exhibition “just-a-furniture”, courtesy of Charis Mok.
Photos and poster of the exhibition “just-a-furniture”, courtesy of Charis Mok.
Photos and poster of the exhibition “just-a-furniture”, courtesy of Charis Mok.

Design Trust Seed Grant exhibition “just-a-furniture” by Charis Mok was held from 21st  February to 1st  March at Habyt Bridges Community Living Room, Central. The project researched adaptive urban furniture across Hong Kong, expanded people's understanding and perception of furniture in a broader human context, and looking into the concept of place-making on a human scale. The exhibition featured nine prototypes of adaptive furniture, which captured the fluidity and tangible realities of life in the city, revealing how everyday  pieces become extraordinary through design intervention, providing participants with an interactive experience to explore how furniture shapes their spatial environment.

Publication “Interior Sketch Series: Cha Chaan Teng in Hong Kong and Macau”, courtesy of James Chong
Display of the research at the exhibition “The Cha Chaan Teng Codex”, courtesy of James Chong
Sample page from the book, courtesy of James Chong
Sketch process documentation, courtesy of James Chong
Sketch process documentation, courtesy of James Chong

Design Trust Seed Grant publication “Interior Sketch Series: Cha Chaan Teng in Hong Kong and Macau” led by James Chong and Rolling Books recently launched features spatial, cultural and operational analysis of Cha Chaan Tengs,  in Hong Kong and Macau with perspective illustration drawings, diagrams, historical photos to reveal how the interior design of Cha Chaan Teng changes to fulfil its communal purpose. Through spatial analysis, interview and document research, the publication explores the Cha Chaan Teng's vital connection to local culture, collective memory, and identity, while discovering the design and local tradition that has shaped our everyday lives. The project invited illustrator Ikey Poon, Kelsey Chan and ah Tsui, writer Lui Ka-chun, together with reporter Lau Ming-wai to contribute to the documentation of the history and evolution of these case studies of Cha Chaan Tengs, and the hidden stories of the families through interviews. The publication and the research were also featured in the exhibition “The Cha Chaan Teng Codex” curated by Design Trust grantee and mentee alumni Kay Chan and Charles Lai at Aireside in Kai Tak, Hong Kong.

Exhibition and Symposium “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”, courtesy of HKDI.
Exhibition and Symposium “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”, courtesy of HKDI.
Exhibition and Symposium “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”, courtesy of HKDI.
Exhibition and Symposium “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”, courtesy of HKDI.
Exhibition and Symposium “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong”, courtesy of HKDI.

Exhibition and Symposium of Design Trust Graphic Archive Fellowship in partnership with HKDI

In partnership with HKDI, Design Trust Graphic Archive Fellow Walter Chan presented the showcase “From here to there: How design moves Hong Kong” from April 14th to April 26th revisiting the graphic design history of Hong Kong’s public transport from the 1940s to the 1980s, and the relationship between graphic design and user behaviour, on everyday commuting as a form of urban aesthetics.  As part of the ongoing fellowship research, “HKDI Graphic Archive Symposium” was held on Saturday April 25th with a presentation from the 2025 fellow Walter Chan. Responding to his research on the graphic identity of the public transportation system in Hong Kong, 2026 fellow Wibo Bakker also shared on the evolution of the graphic system of Netherlands Railways and its design process; 2026 fellow Loraine Wong also discussed the color usage in Hong Kong’s everyday objects and how the print industry in Hong Kong has been using different design pattern to create color variation with limited paint options.

Design Trust Graphic Archive Research Fellowship, in partnership with HKDI, supports fellowship research on the history and development of graphic design, publishing and advertising from the 1940s to the 1980s in Hong Kong to unfold the transition of ‘commercial art’ as a trade to ‘graphic design’ as a profession. The fellowship research from 2024 to 2026 will culminate in an exhibition planned for 2028.