The Death and Life of Hong Kong’s Illegal Façades

Francisco García Moro

doi:10.5334/ajar.231

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Photograph of the 1967 riots: ‘1st Battalion, The Welsh Regiment cordon in Hennessy Road, Wan Chai’ [Source: Ming Pao Daily News on 12th July 1967. Hong Kong, Sing Tao Micro-file Centre, 1980. Fair use for non-commercial purposes].

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Left: A cluster of ‘Tong Lau’ shophouses in Johnson Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island, as seen in 2005 prior to their restoration by the Urban Renewal Authority [Photograph: Francisco Garcia Moro. All rights reserved]. Right: As seen in 2011 after the URA’s renovation process [Courtesy of CNN Travel. Fair use for non-commercial purposes].

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Diagram of the permitted signage areas on facades according to the regulations stipulated by the Hong Kong Building Department [Image by Francisco Garcia Moro based on the Building Department’s brochure].

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One of the 1950s ‘composite buildings’ with a restored façade and predominantly legal modifications such as air-conditioning condensers and clothes drying racks [Photograph: Francisco Garcia Moro. All rights reserved].

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House belonging to Teresa Cheng with its illegal structures, as seen in 2018 [Image by Francisco Garcia Moro based on infography by SCMP].

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Left: Photograph of the 1967 demonstrations in Avenue Almeida Ribeiro, Macau [Courtesy of Leung Mee-Ping. All rights reserved]. Right: ‘Coca-Cola’ signboard in Avenue Almeida Ribeiro, Macau, as seen in 2008 [Photograph: Francisco Garcia Moro. All rights reserved].

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