The Hong Kong Ambassadors of Design are preparing for their art and design festival, Detour, which runs from November 30 to December 16.
This year’s theme, Design Renegade, is being overseen by John Bela, the founder of California design studio Rebar, and Justine Topfer, a writer and curator from San Francisco.
“We want to encourage the public to participate and interact with our artists – everybody can be a design renegade,” Aidan Li, creative director with the Ambassadors of Design, said at a promotional event at The Pawn. “The installations … the artists create serve as tools for everybody to rethink our rights to enjoy our public space.”
The Hong Kong Ambassadors of Design is a non-profit venture set up in 2006 by individuals “committed to capturing the creative imagination of the public”.
The group’s chairman Alan Lo was also at The Pawn to discuss the festival line-up, along with local designers such as Kacey Wong Kwok-choi, graphic artist Little Thunder and architect Tim Li Man-wai.
To show how the public can take part in the festival, design group The Cave held a workshop on the rooftop of The Pawn, teaching participants how to make a wooden stool. The main venue for the festival has been moved from the former Police Married Quarters in SoHo to the former Wan Chai Police Station. Artists say the smaller space will challenge their creative process.
“The new venue has less space that we can use,” said artist Wong Tin-yan. “But restrictions become my source of inspiration – it reinforces my belief that artworks, in my case sculptures, should not be static or confined to indoors. My wooden Snake Trolley … encourages viewers to push it around and out on to the street, allowing those who are not initially interested in going into the exhibition space to see my work as well.”
Other highlights include a giant map of Wan Chai created by graffiti outfit Start From Zero, leather and origami workshops, a fair with designer goods for sale, and works exhibited at satellite site Oasis Gallery at the Central Market.