Director highlights Hong Kong’s growing arts and culture

Director of Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York (HKETONY), Ms. Anita Chan highlighted Hong Kong’s unique cultural characteristics and efforts by the Hong Kong government to promote arts and culture when she met and spoke August 3 to 10 candidates of the Master of Arts in Arts Administration program at Goucher College in Baltimore.

During the session on “Hong Kong’s Development as a Cultural Hub,” Ms. Chan pointed out that Hong Kong offers a unique blend of East and West as well as an appealing mix of the old and new.

Ms. Chan provided an overview of Hong Kong’s local art scene and its emergence as a dynamic art hub of the world, highlighting the well-established Hong Kong Arts Festival; Art Hong Kong, one of the world’s leading contemporary art fairs; and the growing number of renowned international art galleries setting up in Hong Kong to complement existing local galleries, antique shops and thriving art auctions in the city.

“The rich arts and cultural scene in Hong Kong thrives largely because of our city’s unique characteristics: our proximity to the fast-growing Asia, especially mainland China, our respect for freedom of speech and artistic expression, the fusion of Western and Chinese influences, and business-friendly policies such as a very low income tax and profits tax rate plus no import taxes, sales taxes or capital-gains taxes,” said Ms. Chan. Another important factor is the government’s strong support for arts and culture and the creative industries.

Ms. Chan also highlighted the development of the 40-hectare integrated arts and cultural district – West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) – with an upfront endowment of US$2.8 billion.

The WKCD will house a total of 15 new facilities, including a concert hall, a Great Theatre, an opera house dedicated to traditional Chinese opera called Xiqu Center, four black box theaters, a chamber music hall, four medium-sized theaters of 800 seats, a mega performance venue (18,000 seats) and ancillary education and entertainment facilities. The flagship museum of WKCD will be M+, Hong Kong’s first contemporary arts museum, focusing on 20th to 21st century visual culture and housing an exhibition center mainly for arts exhibitions and trade shows.

The site also will include 23 hectares of open space, comprising a waterfront promenade and three hectares of piazza. This will be one of the largest integrated multi-arts complexes in the world when completed.

In terms of performing-arts venues, WKCD will bring a 50% increase to the 28 venues Hong Kong currently has. It will enable Hong Kong to stage more long-running shows and grand productions such as Broadway or West End musicals, or operas from Milan or the Metropolitan Opera of New York.

“Our vision for WKCD is that it should be a world-class attraction that Hong Kong people can be proud of. It is built for the enjoyment of our own citizens as well as visitors from around the world,” Ms. Chan said. “It should be a place where the best of the world’s artists and performers would like to be and where top architects and designers would feel proud to be associated with. It should be a symbol of what we aspire to be – a thriving international cultural hub.”

Aside from building hardware, Hong Kong also is committed to developing and creating stronger cultural software through four strategic areas: arts program development, audience building, arts education and staff training, as well as enhancing cultural exchange with the rest of the world.

For example, a new high school curriculum was launched to provide more hours of arts learning experience (no fewer than 135 hours) for senior high school students. New funding is allocated to the Academy for Performing Arts to provide professional training from post-secondary diploma level up to master's degree level. Assistance also is being given to ramp up professional artists and art bodies through such efforts as increasing funding for nine major performing companies. More funds have been allocated to the Arts Development Council, which is a statutory body with a mission to support art development projects, small- and medium-sized art groups and art-policy research, as well as advocacy.

Ms. Chan added that heritage conservation is also another important aspect of Hong Kong’s cultural policy, pointing out that the government’s commitment is demonstrated in new expenditure for heritage preservation and revitalization, with a number of heritage-protection or revitalization projects being embarked upon.

For example, Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) opened its Hong Kong Campus just last year within the walls of the building of the former North Kowloon Magistracy, making this the first Asian branch campus for the college. The architecture and interiors of the old Magistracy were preserved carefully, but the SCAD architects have transformed it into a super modern and colorful learning space for its students.

Two other arts-related projects are the development of the Central Police Station Compound and Former Police Married Quarters on Hollywood Road in Central. The former will be a center of heritage, arts and leisure facilities with space for galleries, exhibitions, performances and arts organizations. The latter is to become a creative-industries landmark with designer studios, start-up establishments, retail space for arts and crafts, and rooms for artists-in-residence. Renovation work for both projects is expected to commence in 2012 and be completed in 2014.

Ms. Chan also pointed out that Hong Kong’s continuous growth as a cultural hub means new projects, new business opportunities and new jobs, as well as more opportunities for creative talents and greater demand for professionals in the arts-related business.

In conversation with program candidates, they expressed interests in making a visit to Hong Kong. Ms. Chan said HKETONY would be happy to assist.