Design Trust Grant Recipient | Book Publication “HONG KONG MODERN Architecture of the 1950s-1970s”

Design Trust Seed Grant book publication “HONG KONG MODERN Architecture of the 1950s-1970s” by Walter Koditek gives a comprehensive overview on the modernist architecture in combining photography, detailed background information and academic essays.

In the post-war decades, Hong Kong architects, many of them emigrated from Mainland China, embraced the modernist principles when forced to face the problems of housing shortage, mass construction and limited budgets. Although economic efficiencies often prevailed over design, their buildings were rooted in time and place, reflecting the local climate, social values, materials, technique and use in an often unique and pragmatic fashion. With more than 300 buildings and ensembles documented, this book serves as a reference and enhance knowledge on modernist architecture of the post-war era in Hong Kong, and will contribute to the discussion of its architectural merit, historic and cultural values.

An exhibition was hosted at the Goethe-Gallery, from 21 January to 12 February 2022, uniquely combining photography and carefully researched background information. For the first time, based on their research, urban planner and photographer Walter Koditek and architect and researcher Charles Lai, co-exhibited their work focusing on the architecture of the post-war period. Photographs of modernist building facades taken by Walter Koditek over the last five years are arranged for the exhibition in seven thematic grids grouped by building typology. These photographs are complemented by Charles Lai’s drawings, photographs, and models of fifteen iconic modern buildings, among them the Hong Kong Arts Centre by Tao Ho, thus showcasing the wide spectrum of architectural vocabularies and local characteristics of Hong Kong’s post-war modern architecture, as well as the colourful life stories of the Chinese architects behind these buildings. An online tour led by Walter Koditek and Charles Lai was arranged on 13 February 2022, where they presented the exhibition and answered to questions from the audience. Revisit the tour on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rtuuvddc2sw