King Wah Signboard : a depository of Hong Kong's intangible cultural heritage

Abstract

One of the recent hot topics related to heritage conservation is undoubtedly the revitalization project of the State Theatre located at North Point conducted by the New World Development (NWD). On the one hand, it is definitely regarded as worth celebrating as the project has avoided the theatre to be demolished; yet, on the other hand, it also signified the gradual close down of traditional old shops which were originally located in the complex of the theatre despite the fact that the objective of the revitalization project lies on maintaining its nature of a culture hub and the outstanding architectural features. Indeed, these traditional shops had been operating for years since the opening of the theatre. However, since 2018, when the New World Development applied for a compulsory sale order, these old shops started to close one after another. Currently, all tenants are forced to moved out, and one of the shops, King Wah Signboard has become the recent talk of the city because of its unique typeface and the spirit of producing handcrafted signages. Although there is an emergence of digitization of typeface, the master, Mr. Au Yeung Cheong, insisted to produce hand-crafted signages. More than that, this shop indeed contains a number of intangible elements which are conceivable to be recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage in Hong Kong. In view of this, this thesis aims at investigating the intangible elements of the shop and discuss whether they should be recognized as ICH under category of traditional craftsmanship on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Hong Kong. Through research, and interviews, it is hoped to reveal the intangible character defining elements of the shops, and its contribution in shaping Hong Kong’s streetscape. Recommendation will also be provided in hoping of safeguarding the intangible elements in future.