(Direktlink)

Extending from land to sea, each glowing ovoid responds to touch and movement. When pushed over by wind, waves, or human force, the resilient forms rise and change colors, triggering a chain reaction with neighboring sculptures and alluding to how humans and nature are affected by their environments. This is especially evident in the bobbing structures partially submerged in the sea, which are constantly shifted by the marine conditions. Together, each distinct component creates an illuminating conversation between viewers, their surroundings, and the physicality of the work itself.

(Direktlink, via Colossal)

I first watched Manga’s cult classic „Ghost in the Shell“ when I was a teen but only recently realised that the film’s city background is actually based on Hong Kong – my current place of residence.
When it was made in 1995, it depicted a grimy, futuristic city. Now, 16 years later, it’s interesting to see how Hong Kong has physically changed. So I set out to try and recreate particular scenes from the film. The biggest differences between the film and now is that Hong Kong no longer has those awesome low-flying airplanes (airport moved in 1998) nor do we have canals and river boats – though we do have tramcar systems which is the obvious influence for Masamune. Not every shot could be faithfully recreated. Simply because it was an animation!

(Direktlink, via Zwentner)

Inside an ordinary building on an ordinary street in Hong Kong is one of the world’s most valuable record collections.

James Tang has spent the past five decades collecting rare vinyl, cassettes, and CDs. He has over 20,000 records, including original master recordings of the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Nat King Cole.

(Direktlink, via Blogbuzzter)

The population of Hong Kong is estimated at 7.50 million in 2020 It is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, and has a population density of 6790.74 people per square kilometer.

Why “Blocks“ ?
Concrete jungle – a city or urban area which has a high density of large, unattractive, modern buildings and is perceived as an unpleasant living environment. But that doesn’t apply to everyone. I moved to Hong Kong few years ago and since day one I got obsessed by these giant public housing/apartment block building structures, their patterns, colours, shapes, architecture, how massively yet easy they blend in and coexist with each other in this city. Back in Riga, Latvia (that’s where I’m from) old and grey post soviet block buildings represent big part of my identity as well, I guess that might have given me extra interest in this particular topic.
My attempt to capture the city feel, often very dystopian, moody and futuristic, at least that is how I felt.

(Direktlink, via FernSehErsatz)

The main ingredient is black peppercorns, a reminder of the pungent, peppery rounds fired by police on the streets of the semi-autonomous Chinese city during months of demonstrations last year.

“It tastes like tear gas. It feels difficult to breathe at first, and it’s really pungent and irritating. It makes me want to drink a lot of water immediately,” said customer Anita Wong, who experienced tear gas at a protest. “I think it’s a flashback that reminds me of how painful I felt in the movement, and that I shouldn’t forget.”

Wholesome quarantine footage: Giant panda Ying Ying and Le Le in Hong Kong did what many people do under #coronavirus lockdown, do what comes naturally…for the very 1st time in a decade for this panda couple pic.twitter.com/kNH5bDrbgQ

— Carl Zha (@CarlZha) April 6, 2020

(Danke, CarFreiTag!)

(Direktlink)

Riot police and protesters fought fierce battles up and down Kowloon’s Nathan Road on Tuesday. Hundreds of tear gas cannisters and Molotov cocktails were thrown, and dozens of arrests were made.

(Direktlink)

Von dort staatlicher Seite wurde neulich aus nächster Nähe auf einen 15-Jährigen geschossen. Verzweiflung sorgt auf der Seite der Protestierenden mittlerweile offenbar für Ideen, die aus dem Steampunk- oder dem Fantasy-Genre kommen könnte: sie feuern Ziegel mit Bambus-Katapulten, die sie selber zusammengeklöppelt haben.

https://twitter.com/HongKongFP/status/1180884528786591744

Die Skateboarding-Marke Vans hat sich Ärger eingefangen. So hatte sie einen Designwettbewerb für Sneaker ausgerufen und Leute dazu eingeladen, ihre Entwürfe einzureichen, was Leute dann gemeinhin auch gerne tun. Man kennt das.

Der jährlich stattfindende Vans Custom Culture-Wettbewerb lädt die Öffentlichkeit dazu ein, ihre eigenen Schuhdesigns einzureichen. Der Gewinner einer Online-Abstimmung erhält 25.000 US-Dollar und lässt seine Turnschuhe von der Marke herstellen. Die Einreichungen geschehen online.

In diesem Jahr gab es einen Entwurf von einem in Kanada ansässigen Benutzer namens Naomiso. Dieser zeigte eine rote Bauhinia, die Blume auf der Hongkonger Flagge und einen der gelben Regenschirme, die als Synonym für die Demokratieproteste 2014 der Stadt gelten. Der Entwurf auf der Seite von Vans war durch eine Menge Demonstranten, die Gasmasken, Schutzbrillen und Schutzhelme tragen geziert. Genau jener Entwurf ging dann in der Abstimmung steil und führte diese wohl an. Dann nahm Vans den Entwurf aus der Abstimmung und gab folgendes Statement ab:

„As a brand that is open to everyone, we have never taken a political position and therefore review designs to ensure they are in line with our company’s long-held values of respect and tolerance, as well as with our clearly communicated guidelines for this competition“

Damit flog der Schuh aus dem Wettbewerb. Seitdem hagelt in sozialen Netzwerken Boykottaufrufe gegen Vans.

Und besonders beeindruckend finde ich, wie die Menschen dort ihre Proteste auf die Straßen bringen. Und wie sie auf staatliche Repressalien reagieren. Scheinbar immer wohl durchdacht und verdammt pragmatisch. Keine Ahnung, was sie am Ende für sich dabei rausholen werden, aber ich wünsche ihnen mindestens das für sie Beste.

Hong Kong protesters neutralize tear gas with liquid nitrogen pic.twitter.com/FYCmkuZEXe

— Alonso (@AlonsoBTC) September 3, 2019

Vor Jahren hatte ich hier mal einen Film von Toby Harriman im Blog. Seitdem habe ich von ihm nicht mehr gesehen, was wohl mehr an mir als an ihm liegt, denn er macht generell ziemlich geiles Zeug. So auch sein Video „The Block Tower“, dass die Häuserwände Hong Kongs aus Drohnenperspektiven zeigt. Erinnert nicht wenig an Koyanisquatsi.

Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with an overall density of an estimated 6,300 people per square kilometer.

So to start off a 3.5-week trip a before heading to Southeast Asia, we stopped in Hong Kong for 4 days to see the area and visit Kowloon. This was our bigger stop, before heading into the quiet country. For years I have seen pictures of these public housing/apartment tower blocks being built and knew that was something I wanted to see and document for myself. Rather than just creating stills from these, I went with the goal of taking abstract videos and displaying them more like art, showing off their true scale. This was just a quick trip and a little bit of a scout. I can’t wait to go back and keep documenting these.

(Direktlink, via TYWKIWDBI)

Hong Kong protestors are on another level. Here they’re using lasers to avoid facial recognition cameras. A cyber war against Chinese artificial intelligence. pic.twitter.com/t1hIczr5Go

— Alessandra Bocchi (@alessabocchi) July 31, 2019

(via BoingBoing)

https://twitter.com/alexhofford/status/1155514310308896768

Nun hatten einige der Wiederkäuer offenbar Bock auf Futter und niemanden, der es ihnen reichen könnte. So zog eine Gang von vier Kühen in einen Supermarkt und bediente sich in der Obst- und Gemüseabteilung.

(Direktlink, via Vice)

(Direktlink, via Sploid)

Der dazu perfekt passende Sound kommt von Jan Jelinek.

The principle that organises the official identity of Hong Kong under Chinese rule reads: “wěndìng fánróng” (stability & prosperity). In fact, there is a missing subtext that one can borrow from Robert Venturi’s seminal book on postmodern architecture: complexity & contradiction*. The latter two terms reveal the complementary foundations upon which the official Chinese discourse constructs the image of HK as an exuberant and thriving community. Yet contemporary HK is more than that: its complex and contradictory nature stems from its turbulent historical past, its colonisation and decolonisation, its re-nationalisation, the constant movement of goods and capital, the social injustice and inequality, and above all, the perpetual movement of its people. This movement produces the political, cultural and social mix that generates a hybridised identity, with ephemeral foundations and fluid characteristics. HK’s contradictions and complexities are scribed on the body of its city, manifested in its urban landscape, in the organisation of working, living and public spaces. The city’s structural formations and functions encapsulate the spirit of its past, present and future, speak of its monstrosities and its miracles, uproot the official Chinese discourse and reveal a wealth of contradictions that constitute HK as one of the most attractive and mesmerizing dystopias on earth.
*Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture, Robert Venturi, Moma, 1977.

(Direktlink, via Gilly)

Michael Wolf, Fotograf aus München, hat für seine großartige Serie Architecture of Density die Wohnsilos Hongkongs fotografiert und aus seinen Aufnahmen ein Buch gemacht. Vergriffen und gar nicht mal so billig – aus Gründen wahrscheinlich. Nicht ganz neu, dieses Buch, aber vor ein paar Monaten sprach er dann in diesem Video über seinen Antrieb darüber, Bilder wie diese zu machen. Und ich hab‘ gerade Bock, mir diesen Bildband irgendwie besorgen zu wollen.

(Direktlink, via Doobybrain)

(Direktlink, via Doobybrain)