Open-door policy
The cells are small, the metal grilles rusted and the tiny snatches of sky are depressingly blurred, yet these once-feared spaces in the former Central Police Station compound are now being redeemed as the home of an exhibition that explores the architectural future of the city and beyond.
Hong Kong's first architecture biennale will be in residence in this heritage landmark until March 15, featuring installations, workshops, and exhibitions. Admission is free and visitors can wander through the building's colonial interior, while learning about the built future from the likes of Hong Kong's Rocco Yim (the architect behind the Tamar site's The Door design), and top international names such as Steven Holl Architects, Atelier Bow-Wow and Herzog & de Meuron.
Although few obvious changes have been made, preparing the station proved challenging. 'It was tough because it had been left deserted for almost two years,' says architect and co-curator Martin Fung, who helped direct funds from the Hong Kong Jockey Club. 'We had to convert it from the infrastructural side - water supplies and electricity - to the condition of the exhibition spaces, all to accommodate an event with some of the top architectural designers in the world.'
The effort should prove worthwhile because the event is especially timely. The past few years have seen unprecedented interest from the public in the way that Hong Kong's architectural landscape is developing. Protests at the former Star Ferry and Queen's Pier may not have moved the government to reconsider its plans but had the positive effect of galvanising residents to become more concerned about preserving historical buildings and districts.
Local architects are also getting more involved. 'In New York architects make social, political and artistic commentary. Hong Kong has limited venues for architects to express themselves publicly,' says Jonathan Solomon, an assistant professor of architecture at the University of Hong Kong involved with an exhibit on the Hong Kong, Zuhai, Macau bridge project.
'Now there's more of a dialogue about the space of the city and people are looking around and saying, 'Why is it like this?' It's what happens when people feel they have a stake in their own city.'
The event encompasses work from community groups, artists and governing bodies such as the Urban Renewal Authority. In one barrack building, urban planning comes into focus. REaD Beijing by Wang Lu and Shan Jun looks at how the capital is changing and offers abstract ideas for its development, while a Chinese University project shows how Kennedy Town has evolved.
There is room for more avant-garde designs - Vanke Crystal City in Tianjin shows a sports facility built inside the concrete foundations of an old factory, a modern venue in glass and aluminium that has a visible memory of the past.
'People are fixated on architecture as simply building buildings, so the conceptual, arty pieces here are great,' says architect Kenneth Yeung. 'This kind of thing is lacking in the profession, locally.'
The key theme is 'Refabricating the city', which considers the idea that cities must be regularly reworked in line with shifting trends and new technology. The topic has plenty of room for debate. Do cities have a sell-by date? How much of the past should be preserved for the future?
Some of the more interesting answers come from visionary architects such as Ma Yansong, who last year famously proposed to make a forest of Tiananmen Square.
The biennale may fly below the radar (publicity has been thin) but it's a positive sign for a city entering a new era of public interest in the way the city is shaped. It's a great way to see a historical building - even though there are questions about who the audience is.
'I do wonder who it's for exactly - for architects or for the public,' says Tobias Berger, curator of Para/Site gallery. 'Creatively, it's a start.'
Hong Kong-Shenzhen Biennale of Urbanism and Architecture, daily, 10am to 6pm (closed Feb 6-8), Central Police Station Compound, 10 Hollywood Road, Central. Free admission. Ends Mar 15
