Governance, organisational dynamics and the arts in Hong Kong : a study of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority

Abstract

Arts in Hong Kong have received little attention from the government in recent decades. Hong Kong has long been perceived as a cultural desert where the general public is apathetic about the development of the arts, and arts policy is never high on the government agenda. A policy window opened, however, in the 1998 Policy Address when the government pledged to build an arts hub on reclaimed land in West Kowloon, which subsequently laid down the foundation for the development of the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD).

The project is not a self-contained or stand-alone initiative as it reflects the policy decisions of the government, the setting up of a statutory body to oversee the project at arms-length from government - the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA), as well as the governance of the arts and their inter-organizational dynamics in Hong Kong. The initiation of the WKCD project has affected not only the arts ecology in Hong Kong, but has also increased society’s awareness and concern about the role of government in arts development generally and future arts policy, particularly in terms of the growth of creative industries.

The triangular relationship between governance, organisation and the arts in Hong Kong forms the basis for the dissertation, which notes a shift in public perception of the socio-economic influence and power of the arts, culture and creativity in increasing the soft power of a city.