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From Commercial to Global

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Hong Kong Architecture 1945-2015

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Abstract

In the 1970s, under the rule of Governor Murray MacLehose , Hong Kong society presented a thriving scene. More than a million people lived in public rental or government subsidized ownership houses. Social problems were gradually ironed out and people envisaged a peaceful life and rosy tomorrow. At the beginning of the 1980s, Hong Kong took off economically due to its unique position in the open-door policy of the Chinese mainland.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For more on Hong Kong’s economy in the 1980s, see Cheng (1977) and Enright et al. (1997).

  2. 2.

    The committee comprises eight members, including the Honourable Szeto Wai as Chairman, Doctor S.M. Bard, William L. Chan, the Honourable D.W. McDonald, G.R. Ross, George C. Tso, G.L. Mortimer, and K.C. Lye, the then professor of architecture at the University of Hong Kong.

  3. 3.

    Yuncken Freeman H.K., later called Denton Corker Marshall HK, was then a branch office of its main base in Australia. The project budget list of the Urban Council up to 1986 indicates that this company was the second largest architectural company that received commissions from the Urban Council, with a list of nine projects worth $63,846 million HKD in total. By contrast, Wong & Ouyang Architects received only three projects worth $2,000 million HKD (Urban Council, 1986: 70).

  4. 4.

    BJHKC, Historical barracks site sold to Swire Properties. May.1982: 20; 1985: 30 “1985 To strengthen the company’s investment portfolio, Swire Properties purchased the Victoria Barracks site on Queensway at a land auction. The site was planned to be redeveloped into a commercial and hotel project.” http://www.swireproperties.com/en/about-us/history-milestones.aspx.

  5. 5.

    The description of Jardine House is referenced see Wikipedia (2013). For more about its design, see Hong Kong Institute of Architects (2007).

  6. 6.

    Sir Gordon Wu is a major donor to his alma mater Princeton University. In the early 1980s, the Gordon Wu Hall was constructed on the campus of Princeton University, designed by Robert Venturi as a typical post-modernist work.

  7. 7.

    For more about the Hopewell lawsuit, see Jianzhuyouren (2013).

  8. 8.

    The comment on the Hong Kong Club is quoted from Lui Ta Lok’s book Na shiceng xiangshi de qishi niandai (The 1970s we might know), Zhonghua Shuju 2012.

  9. 9.

    The data on the Hong Kong Club are partly taken from Vision–Architecture, Design, June 1983. Some parts are taken from an interview with Mr. Ronald Lau, Deputy Manager of the Hong Kong Club, 14 August 2013.

  10. 10.

    Hong Kong Governor Sir Edward Youde hosted the opening ceremony of Hong Kong Bank in April 1986 and passed away in December during an official visit to Beijing.

  11. 11.

    About Norman Foster’s talking, see documentary movie How much does your building weigh, Mr. Foster?, directed by Norberto Lopez Amado and Carlos Carcas, produced by Elena Ochoa 2010.

  12. 12.

    The details on the construction of Hong Kong Bank and Foster & Partners are from the HSBC, Asian and Pacific Archive; and from Stephanie Williams, Hong Kong Bank—The Building of Norman Foster’s Masterpiece, Jonathan Cape, London, 1989; Vision, No. 20, 1985; Asian Architect & Contractor, Vol. XV, No.11, December 1985.

  13. 13.

    For the last years before Hong Kong’s sovereignty handover, see Patten (1994, 1998).

  14. 14.

    Some information about the competition and design of the Hong Kong airport is from the chief architect Winston T. Shu, interviewed on 4 March 2016.

  15. 15.

    Hong Kong airport was ranked No. 1 in the world for eight years. After 2011, it was in No. 3–4. See SKYTRAX (2015). The technical data of the Hong Kong airport is from HKIA (1998).

  16. 16.

    For details of Phase II of the convention center, see the website of HKCEC (2016) and Wong (1998).

  17. 17.

    For more about Terrell Farrell’s practice in Hong Kong and Asian cities, see Tobin (2002) and Rosi and Erasmus (2008).

  18. 18.

    For more about the career of Arquitectonica, see Arquitectonica (2014).

  19. 19.

    Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre was founded by Maggie Keswick Jencks (1941–1995) and Charles Jencks in 1996. The first centre was located in Edinburgh, and the other 17 centres are scattered in the UK. Buildings were designed by famous architects free of charge. See https://www.maggiescentres.org/about-maggies/. Accessed 2 February 2016.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

    Charlie Q. L. Xue

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  1. Charlie Q. L. Xue
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Correspondence to Charlie Q. L. Xue .

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Xue, C.Q.L. (2016). From Commercial to Global. In: Hong Kong Architecture 1945-2015. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1004-0_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1004-0_7

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