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Jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Hong Kong Heritage Project, and organised by the Antiquities and Monuments Office, the "Factory Hong Kong" exhibition will be held at the Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre from tomorrow (June 12) until September 13. The exhibition will showcase the industrial development of Hong Kong from the post-war period to the 1980s.
The opening ceremony of the exhibition was held today (June 11). Officiating at the ceremony were the Secretary for Development, Mr Paul Chan; the Managing Director of CLP Power Hong Kong Limited, Mr Paul Poon; the Director of Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Limited, Mr Nicholas Colfer; the Acting Deputy Director of Leisure and Cultural Services (Culture), Mr Chan Shing-wai; and the Executive Secretary of the Antiquities and Monuments Office, Ms Susanna Siu.
Hong Kong's industrial development boomed after the Second World War. The Chinese Civil War resulted in an influx of immigrants bringing capital, machinery, technology and labour to Hong Kong. Light industries including textiles, garments, plastics, wigs, toys, clocks and watches and electronics grew rapidly. Thanks to the contribution made by entrepreneurs and factory workers alike, Hong Kong products were exported and became well-known around the world. With the northward exodus of the manufacturing sector starting in the late 1970s and Hong Kong's subsequent economic transformation, the golden age of manufacturing has long since passed, but it remains in the collective memory of older Hongkongers.
The exhibition pays tribute to the forerunners of Hong Kong's manufacturing industry - the entrepreneurs and factory workers whose unfaltering commitment contributed to a miraculous economic expansion, while also examining the crucial role that factories played in this process. Exhibits include historical photos, videotaped oral histories and artworks created by students of the Hong Kong Design Institute based on Hong Kong's manufacturing industry. The exhibition will allow visitors and especially the younger generation to gain a better understanding of Hong Kong's industrial past.
The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre is located at Kowloon Park, Haiphong Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. For details of the exhibition, please visit the Antiquities and Monuments Office's website at www.amo.gov.hk/en/hdc_01.php, or call 2208 4400.
Ends/Thursday, June 11, 2015
Issued at HKT 15:16
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