Celebrating Hong Kong’s Traditional Crafts through Contemporary Design
Crafts on Peel is a new not-for-profit organisation that aims to preserve and encourage the appreciation of Hong Kong’s artisanal heritage by pairing traditional craftspeople with of-the-moment designers and artists
Located in a beautifully restored heritage building on Soho’s Peel Street, amid lively bars, hole-in-the-wall noodle shops and open-air produce stalls, Crafts on Peel is the brainchild of arts and culture patron Yama Chan. It’s the result of Chan’s desire to see her home city’s craft heritage recognised so that, as she puts it, ‘the values of traditional craftsmanship can be integrated into our times’.
By facilitating collaborations between local makers and contemporary designers and artists, the platform aims to preserve the city’s traditional crafts and shine a spotlight on contemporary talent.
The building, which houses retail, exhibition and workshop spaces, as well as a petite accomodation for artists in residence, dates back to 1948. Having worked with Chan on other restoration projects in the past, architect Annette Chu — director of Hong Kong-based firm Eureka — was called on to revitalise the five-floor walk-up building. Chu considers restoration work ‘an act that connects history and future possibility’, and her sensitive preservation and thoughtful interventions mirror Crafts on Peel’s objective of preserving tradition through contemporary design. Modern materials figure alongside original elements like exposed masonry and brickwork, part of the building’s original staircase, and terrazzo made from construction rubble. The architect’s interventions include perforated metal partitions and adjustable oxidised steel shelving that make the spaces adaptable for a diverse range of programmes.
An artist-in-residence programme will see contemporary creators from around the region engage with local craftspeople to create new works, which will then form part of the platform’s annual programming. Kicking this off is the inaugural exhibition Crafts Interwoven: Past and Present, for which Crafts on Peel creative director Penelope Luk brought together local craftspeople and contemporary artisans to collaborate on new pieces. The craftspeople have spent decades perfecting their work, ranging from porcelain painting to the creation of birdcages, bamboo steamers and lion heads for traditional lion dances, while the contemporary designers and artists range from fashion-focused Polly Ho, Jinno Neko and Singchin Lo to interior architect Dylan Kwok, furniture designer Lawrence Ting, metalsmith Anthony So, ceramicist Joey Leung and porcelain artist Lam Duen Shan Ming. Together, craftspeople and designers spent a year creating works that celebrate both traditional crafts and Hong Kong’s contemporary design talent, something we look forward to seeing much more of as Chan and Luk work to make Crafts on Peel both a repository for traditions and a showcase of contemporary talent.
Text / Simone Schultz
Images / Courtesy of Crafts on Peel
