2021_ARCH2058_Guidebook_Colonization_Colonial Buildings in Central by ARCH2058

DEVELOPMENT AND COLONISATION:

CENTRAL

中環

ARCH2058 Modern Architecture | Fall 2021 ASSIGNMENT 3: GUIDEBOOK

Development & Colonisation: Historical Structures in Central Chan Wai Ting Merci (3035740491) Chau Hiu Tung (3035793761) Tsang Yuk Yuk (3035740049)

INTRODUCTION Since British land on Possession Point at Central in 1841, they built a city on Northern Hong Kong Island as an administrative government centre and to house major military facilities. As Canton Bazaar (precursor of Central Market) was built and the area also zoned for Western-style buildings, it dominated the presence of Victoria City with the completion of government houses and buildings on Government Hill. In this walking tour, five historical buildings built during colonial times will be visited. The renovated Central Market and St. John’s Cathedral represents public use of land; and Tai Kwun, PMQ and the former Court of Final Appeal demonstrated the governmental use of land. Through visiting and understanding the present view of these structures, to show the development of Hong Kong in the post-colonisation era, differences between architectural styles and compare between different preservation of sites in Hong Kong.

1 CENTRAL MARKET Being the first wet market of Hong Kong, the Central Market marked a significant start of such operations during the colonized period. During the occupation in 1841, the British established a variety of buildings and facilities, a place was needed for the exchange and trading of Chinese food and goods, resulting in the building of the market. The early Central Market consisted of two 2-storeys blocks with a central avenue in between and had become a 4-storeys building in 1939. It was later converted to form part of the Mid-levels Escalator System. The building is one of the revitalization projects conducted by the Urban Renewal Authority, aiming to turn the market into a leisure landmark where people can meet and hang out. With the same exterior, the design inside the building is changed while keeping some of its old features. Affordable shops and retails are able to be found while 13 out of 255 of the old stalls can still be found in the current market.

2 TAI KWUN The heritage site comprising three declared monuments in 1995: the former Central Police Station, Central Magistracy and Victoria Prison and thirteen other historical buildings at 10 Hollywood Road, is known as Tai Kwun, its old colloquial name of the integrated law enforcement and judiciary compound as recorded in news articles since the 1880s. The Central Police Station Revitalisation Project advocates to conserve and revitalise it for adaptive reuse, at the same time aims at transforming into a leading culture and leisure destination, where the general public are introduced to heritage, contemporary art and leisure elements integrated at the site. Since its decommission in 2006, the Hong Kong government and The Hong Kong Jockey Club co-hosted a not-for-profit revitalisation plan of the site in 2008, that is heritage-led. After a decade in 2019, Tai Kwun was opened to the public in phases, as a new hub for heritage, arts and culture accessible to everyone in the community, serving as a vibrant cultural destination.

3 PMQ PMQ is located at Aberdeen Street, Central. It is a revitalization project initiated by the Government of Hong Kong in 2009 and has a rich historical background of over a century. The site first acted as Victoria College in 1889, then it served as the Police Married Quarters which was the dormitory for police officers after World War II, and has become a creative landmark for arts exhibitions and create-preneurs since 2014. After the revitalization, the total floor areas have reached 18,000 square meters. As there are many nearby galleries and boutiques along Hollywood Road and SoHo, PMQ successfully attracted around 100 design galleries, shops, bookstores and office units to take part in various exhibitions. Besides, there are 15 “pop-up” units for design outlets that are available for renting. Another area would be the 1,000-square-meter central courtyard, it has held well-known events like “Panda-mania” in 2014. To promote the rich and meaningful historic background of PMQ, a tunnel is built that allows visitors to learn about the foundation of the former Victoria College.

4 ST. JOHN’S CATHEDRAL St. John’s Cathedral is located at Garden Road, Central, which is at the prime position in Hong Kong, surrounded by headquarters of different aspects such as the Bank of China Tower, HSBC Building and the Former French Mission Building etc. There are a total of five cathedrals in Hong Kong, whereas St. John’s Cathedral has the longest history in the Province of Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui. It was completed in 1849 and held its first Sunday Service on 11 March 1849. While Hong Kong was undergoing the Japanese Occupation, the cathedral became a club for the Japanese which caused many of the original fittings to be stripped out. Finally on 9 September 1945, the Cathedral had its first service after the arrival of the Royal Navy. With a history of over 170 years, it has developed into having eight services on Saturdays and Sundays that welcomes all to join. St. John’s Cathedral is definitely a good place to have a time of prayers or silence in this busy central business district.

5 FORMER FRENCH MISSION BUILDING Located on the government hill, The Former French Mission Building was built in 1842, the result of extensive refurbishment carried out on a late 19th century structure by the Mission Etrangères de Pari The original structure was a mansion named Johnston House. After serving as homes for the governor of Hong Kong, it has also been used by HSBC and was home to the Russian Consulate in the 1870s and the Hong Kong government once leased the building. It was used by the provisional Government of Hong Kong during Japanese’s occupation of Hong Kong and later was sold to the Hong Kong Government in 1952. One of the significant functions is that it housed the Court of final appeal from 1997 to 2015. In 1915, there was a renovation of the building acquired by the Paris Foreign Missions Society, a chapel topped by a cupola was added in the north-west corner and the otter walls were refaced by the significant red bricks. Now the building stills keeps this feature while it served as a government office which is not open to the public.

Historic Colonial Architectures in Central: Different conservation approaches and their development Chan Wai Ting Merci

In 1841, the British landed on Hong Kong Island at Possession Point. Under the colonisation of Great Britain, Victoria City was built at the site of present Central, to house major governmental structures and facilities. Soon as the city functioned as an open port, commercial firms had occupied the coastal areas and were unwilling to expand with reclamation. Therefore, on the hillside of Northern Hong Kong Island, the British government constructed architectures to house military barracks, offices and government offices, forming the Government Hill with a dense building complex. Important buildings include the Government House of Hong Kong, the Central Government Offices, the former French Foreign Mission Building and the Old Supreme Court that have formed a close political layout to control the political and administrative situation in Hong Kong.

There is also an important church on the Government Hill, St. John’s Cathedral, which symbolizes the importance of the British church to the British Hong Kong government. Other than the buildings that still serve the present Hong Kong government, there are also some other historical buildings in the community. Under the Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme, that aims at revitalising and conserving idle historical buildings through a social enterprise form, some projects in Central maintain the colonial buildings such as Tai Kwun, PMQ and Central Market. In this essay, a closer analysis of the maintenance of these historical structures will be made, to compare different methods of revitalisation and preservation in Hong Kong, and therefore to show the development of colonial buildings in Hong Kong after the return to China in 1997. A selection of different architecture was made due to its condition and difference from the past. St. John’s Ca-

thedral is an example of simple maintenance, with the identical purpose and structure. Former French Mission Building is an example of a government building in that its structural details remain the building house for different purposes to the government by being occupied by different department offices. PMQ serves as an example that is revitalized by implementing new purposes yet maintains its exterior appearance. Tai Kwun is an example of building complex revitalised under concerns of conserving building structure and details, even of the construction methods, with new programmes in the structure that echo with the communal development. Lastly, Central Market demonstrates how the modern architecture interprets structural concepts and reconstructs an aged structure without changing its role as a market place in the community. The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Evangelist, commonly known as St. John’s Cathedral was declared a monument in 1996. As the oldest surviving ecclesiastical building in

Hong Kong, the building was built in Gothic style with a bell tower above the main entrance. The foundation stone was laid by the then Governor, Sir John Davis, on 11 March 1847 and the construction completed in 1849. The Cathedral underwent an extension with the addition of the chapel of the Eastend in 1873. The site of St John’s Cathedral is the only freehold land in Hong Kong, granted in fee simple pursuant to s.6(1) of the Church of England Trust Ordinance (Cap.1014) of 1930. All other land tenure in Hong Kong is leasehold in nature. It demonstrates the position of the church in colonial Hong Kong and importance in the community as a gathering place of Europeans and British. During the Japanese Occupation (1941-1945), the building was converted to a clubhouse for the Japanese. The building was seriously damaged during the war and was fully repaired later with the same building materials as British cathedrals. The Lord Wilson Heritage Trust provided funding support to St. John’s Cathedral in 1999, 2006 and 2007 for undertaking con-

servation projects including re-roofing and restoration of the Cathedral. As the first generation of local conservation architecture Lin referred to, all the construction and repairing work of the cathedral follows the rationale of least moderation, such as the absence of air-conditioning in the cathedral that might lead to termite erosion. The church plays a role in Hong Kong preservation that only protects and conserves the structure when its function still stands in the community. It also suggests the possibility of balancing between modern architectural systems and former architectural elements such as how the forgone air-conditioning protects the structure and abandons modern comfort in architecture. The Former French Mission Building was declared a monument in 1989. The structure was built in 1917 by the French Society of Foreign Missions as its Procure of Hong Kong. The building was used briefly by the Government before Hong Kong fell to the Japanese in 1941 during the Second World War. Immedi-

ately after WWII, it was made the temporary headquarters of the Provisional Hong Kong Government. The French Mission and the Hong Kong Government signed a contract for the transaction of the building in 1952. Since 1953, the building has been occupied successively by the Education Department, Victoria District Court, the Supreme Court and the Information Services Department. It housed the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal between 1997 and 2015. After the relocation to the Old Supreme Court building in September 2015, the building was subsequently renovated for use by law-related organisations and related purposes. Dating from the Edwardian period, the three-storey building with a basement is constructed in granite and red bricks in the Neoclassical style. A chapel is incorporated in the north-west corner, where its cupola projects above the roof. It has undergone several alterations since the Second World War, but many historical architectural features can still be seen in the building. For example, the hall on the ground floor with its

ornate columns, wooden staircase and vaulted ceiling and the well-proportioned inner courtyard qualify the building as one of the finest pieces of historical architecture in Hong Kong. The building demonstrates another alternative of conservation in Hong Kong, that the government could take up the initiative of reusing the historical sites such as how different government departments use the building as offices at different periods of time. PMQ is the historic site of the old Hollywood Road Police Married Quarters, which is now a mixed-use arts and design venue in Hong Kong. The site had been used as schools and was destroyed during the Japanese Occupation and remains were demolished in 1948. The current structure was built in 1951, in order to increase police recruitment in response to the influx of Chinese immigrants after the Chinese Civil War, it provided 140 single room units and 28 double room units for the rank and file officers serving at the nearby Central Police Station. In 2009, the ‘Conserving Central’ project mentioned in the Policy Address

that eight heritage sites in Central including PMQ should be renovated, after being emptied for 9 years. In April 2014, PMQ started to operate as a creative hub. The revitalisation follows six major principles: 1) to preserve historic relics, 2) to emphasize the cultural and historical value and the original ambience, 3) to give it a new lease of life by gathering creative industries to make it a landmark for local residents and visitors, 4) to contribute to the urban planning along Hollywood Road and the surrounding area on the proposed ‘spot, line and area’ heritage conservation methods, 5) to respond to community concerns about the development density and the building height, and 6) fulfill community expectations of having more public space. After the construction, revitalised PMQ organizes free arts programs, events and workshops monthly to create an atmosphere of creative and leisure elements in the community. Similarly, Tai Kwun is comprised of three de-

clared monuments in 1995: the former Central Police Station, Central Magistracy and Victoria Prison and thirteen other historical buildings at 10 Hollywood Road, is known as Tai Kwun, its old colloquial name of the integrated law enforcement and judiciary compound as recorded in news articles since the 1880s. The Central Police Station Revitalisation Project advocates to conserve and revitalise it for adaptive reuse, at the same time aims at transforming into a leading culture and leisure destination, where the general public are introduced to heritage, contemporary art and leisure elements integrated at the site. Since its decommission in 2006, the Hong Kong government and The Hong Kong Jockey Club co-hosted a not-for-profit revitalisation plan of the site in 2008, that is heritage-led. After a decade in 2019, Tai Kwun was opened to the public in phases, as a new hub for heritage, arts and culture accessible to everyone in the community, serving as a vibrant cultural destination. What makes it different from the PMQ project is that the

revitalisation plan included a lot of technical construction and identical replacement of materials and details in the structures. There are 5 elements in the site that is not renovated for the visitors to personally experience the structure but instead for the conservation of the history: including the Underground Passage in the Court, Balconies and Verandahs, Ablutions Block and Immigration, WWII Air Raid Shelter, and Prison Ladder Store. These components are not opened to public visits because of the past construction that violates the current safety regulations. However, the team decided to repair all that with same materials and modern technology. The site also features a selection of restaurants and shops that offer culturally meaningful experiences. Income from these establishments contribute to the maintenance and sustainability of the site. Tai Kwun plays a significant role in the history of conservation in Hong Kong, in terms of the balance between economic cost and value, and historical value.

Lastly, the Central Market , a grade 3 historical building was the fourth generation and forms the marketplace in Central. In 1842, after the occupation of Hong Kong Island in 1841, the British needed to establish a variety of buildings and facilities. The resulting influx of Chinese artisans and food traders called for the need for a marketplace. It was documented that Central Market was formally opened to the south of its present site on 10th June 1842 and farmed out to a Chinese, called Afoon. The current 4th Generation Central Market is a 4-storey building built in 1939, being an exemplification of the Streamline Moderne style of the time. It is characterized by the slim horizontal lines and functionalism of the building. The building has a total of 255 market stalls, an open Atrium is located at the center of the building. In March 2003, Central Market ceased operation due to move out of shops. In 2009 Chief Executive’s Policy Address announced the site is to be removed from the Land Application List and handed over to the Urban Renewal Authority for conservation

and revitalisation. After its opening in 2021, the market demonstrates the fifth type of revitalisation in Hong Kong, where the architects adapts to the streamline and facade of the previous market and reinterpret with new building materials and technology to maintain the interior flow of people and exterior view of the structure. URA and the government collaborated to promote entrepreneurship in the community by providing resources to support start-up companies and local businesses to run in the market, by providing furniture, interior renovation and licenses to lower the costs. It demonstrates how the government may change the form of community by providing initiatives and projects that benefit the targeted civils and instead of making the site echo with the community, by inserting a specific community into a city, to implement its urban planning aims and achieve the goals, such as how the Central Market Project can attract entrepreneurship in Central. In conclusion, since the establishment of the

port in Central, the community has been the centre of politics and financial centre of Hong Kong, containing and remaining a lot of historical architecture. It demonstrates the history of the community and tells the story of a place, therefore conservation and revitalisation becomes very important in districts with old history such as Central in order to keep its history and value as a component in Hong Kong. This essay reflects on the 5 common methods of revitalisation and conservation in order to see how the previous projects and these remaining structures tells the relationship and interaction between the historical sites and communities through different programs.

Notes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

PMQ | Homepage. Accessed December 21, 2021. https://www.pmq.org.hk/. Central market Accessed December 20, 2021. https://www.centralmarket.hk/en. Understanding colonial architecture (Chinese). Accessed December 20, 2021. https://www.chunghwabook.com.hk/Public//files/upload/9789888571949.pdf Different architecture in Central (Chinese). Accessed December, 20, 2021. https://minisite.proj. h k e d c i t y. n e t / h k i a k i t / g e t R e s o u rce s. ht m l ? i d = 3 8 7 7 Tai Kwun Accessed December 21, 2021. https://www.taikwun.hk/en/ Antiquities and Monument Office. Accessed December 20, 2021. https://www.amo.gov.hk/b5/index.php

Historic Colonial Architectures in Central: Impacts to the society Hiu Tung Chau

British colonization is one of the essential histories that placed great impact on the development of Hong Kong. The influences on culture, lifestyles, architectural designs are some of the examples that can be significantly reflected by the contemporary city faces of Hong Kong. While in Central where the British government used as the concentration of the headquarters, many buildings and structures were built during the occupation period, including the five historical spots in the walking tour. Being constructed with western designs and building technology, the buildings each has its own distinct functions and features. Meanwhile, they do have certain effects and influences towards the locals, the surrounding area and the culture, nonetheless, having different impacts in various time periods accordingly.

Located in one concentrated area, the buildings created a governmental and social boundary in Hong Kong Island, particularly in Central. Majority of the government offices and administrative buildings of the British are located in the area which place a representation of the higher social level as it was the center of the British rulers. Each of the buildings has their own implications and depiction. PMQ, was once used to serve as the Police Married Quarters, providing a dormitory for the police officers.[1] The Hong Kong Police Force[2], established by the British colonial government was claimed to be one of the higher level occupations, who were receiving great degree of respect from people back at the period. While the Former French Mission Building served as the mansion in 1842 for the first governor of Hong Kong[3], Sir Henry Pottinger and later for his successor John Francis Davis. Both of the two people were public figures who were at the top of the social hierarchy, representation of the majestic

and noble figure. Having such social portrayal, people believed the area was moderately a more exquisite place compared to other districts in Hong Kong. Rich families and people gravitated towards the area, choosing the nearby region as their habitation. After the British had arrived on Hong Kong Island, there was a need to build a variety of facilities. While the buildings were mainly located in Central and knowing that high level populations were centralized in the region, higher chances of business activities were expected to be conducted in the area. Therefore, the Chinese Adrian traders were attracted to exchange goods in the area resulting in the construction of the Central Market[4]. With an increasing number of people choosing to have trading and business activities in Central, it slowly formed the central business district of Hong Kong. Apart from the above, it undoubtedly affect the design of the housing design of

Hong Kong in the nearby area, especially the mansions and some important buildings. Influenced by the western culture, some features including using red bricks, white columns and having low building heights can be significantly seen in the housings. After the handover of Hong Kong, these buildings are still being kept by the society. With the time changing and the prompt development of the community, some of the functions and outlook of the buildings may be different from the previous faces. While having different functions or a new lineament to the public, it brought another range of impacts to the area and the people, including the activities and the circulation of people. One of the significant effects of the spots in the walking tour is the benefits they brought to tourism as they have created a comprehensive guide for people to visit and travel. With the linkage by the Mid-level escalator system, the buildings are being ideally linked which

provides a route facilitating the traveling of people. In 1994, part of it was converted to the Central Escalator Link Alley Shopping Arcade, encouraging people to consume and increase consumption during the tour. The Central Market has turned into a more leisure landmark for people to hang out and relax, attracting people from different ages to visit the building. It also aims to cater local brands and start-up businesses[5], allowing both tourists and locals to get to know more about the local culture. Meanwhile, the places do have exhibitions and some guide leaflets for people to know more about the past history and development of the structures. Tai Kwun even has introduction videos provided for people, allowing them to deeply understand the functions and how it works back at the time. Besides, a tunnel was built in PMQ allowing visitors to know its past history of being the former Victoria College. Most of the original functions of the buildings are changed, meanwhile adding some artistic

colours to the environment. In Tai Kwun and Central Market, there are open spaces provided for people to perform, including music busking, Orchestra performances. Platforms are provided to the performers and facilitate the development of the creative industry as there are more opportunities for people to express themselves. While PMQ provided a place for various organizations to hold exhibitions regularly. It had successfully attracted more than 100 design galleries, bookstores and shops to gather around, creating a common area for people to discuss on the art fields. Keeping these historical structures, architectural conservations have been brought to the forefront to the public. These buildings are having high historical values which are worthy to put great effort in retainment and protection. They provided an opportunity to raise the public’s awareness towards the issue and understand more about the history of their living place.

Some of the structures including PMQ and the Central Market are the revitalization and conservation projects conducted by the Urban Renewal Authority[6], aiming to turn these old structures into a new one while keeping the important features of the buildings. The revitalized Central Market completed the final piece of Central’s “Heritage Triangle”[7], along with PMQ and Tai Kwun. Although the three spots are preserved in different ways, some keep the original function while some original outlook, they do have similar effects on architectural conservation. More and more people pay attention to the topics and start to understand more about the importance of preservation. The revitalization of PMQ was successful in that it created a space with multiple uses for the diverse public, shaped by the mixture including economic considerations, policy objectives and public concerns. It has effectively brought in the creative industries that attracted people to visit there and get

in touch with more art related works[8]. On the contrary, the revitalisation of the Central Market is less successful in comparison to PMQ. The Urban Renewal Authority wants to create a ‘playground for all’[9], nonetheless conservationists claim that it is ‘nothing related’ to the past. They have kept the original structure of the building but with the interior completely not relatable. The project has only retained 13 out of 255 market stalls and those stalls were scattered across the market and it has failed to see many stores with local characteristics unlike PMQ. Although the reopening of Central Market attracted many of the people to visit, it received ample negative comments. Despite the controversy, this has successfully raised the attention towards revitalisation of historic architectures, Influencing people to start paying attention to other historical buildings around Hong Kong.

Notes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

“PMQ : Homepage.” PMQ | Homepage. Accessed December 22, 2021. https://www.pmq.org.hk/. “Home: Hong Kong Police Force.” Home | Hong Kong Police Force. Accessed December 22, 2021. https://www.police.gov.hk/ppp_en/. “Former French Mission Building.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, August 17, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wik i/Former_French_M ission_Building. Central market Accessed December 22, 2021. https://www.centralmarket.hk/en. Central market . Accessed December 22, 2021. https://www.centralmarket.hk/en. “Urban Renewal Authority.” URA. Accessed December 22, 2021. https://www.ura.org.hk/en. Tang, Tiffany. “Between the Skyscrapers; Hong Kong Hidden Heritage Gems Come Alive.” iDiscover, August 6, 2019. https://i-discoverasia.com/hk-hidden-heritage. Barber, Lachlan B. “Capitalizing on Culture in Flagship Heritage Initiatives: Transforming Hong Kong’s Police Married Quarters into ‘PMQ.’” City, Culture and Society. Elsevier, September 25, 2018. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1877916618300365. “A Study on Historical and Architectural Context of - HKIA.NET.” Accessed December 22, 2021. https:// www.hkia.net/UserFiles/Image/position_paper_press_ re l e a s e / Ce n t r a l _ M a r k e t _ S t u d y _ R e p o r t _ Fi n a l. p d f

Colonization and Architectural Forms: To what extent does British colonization influence the design of colonial architecture in Hong Kong Tsang Yuk Yuk

In the history of Hong Kong, one of the most influential factors on the architectural styles would be colonization. In 1842, at the end of the first opium war, The Treaty of Nanking was signed by China and Britain which ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain (Chhibber, 2002). This marked the beginning of Hong Kong’s colonial period, since then British culture has an increasingly deeper impact on Hong Kong’s colonial architecture that can still be seen nowadays. First of all, “colonial architecture” can be defined as all buildings built during Hong Kong’s colonial period from 1841 to 1997 (Lee, 2015). The first half of the colonial period can be mainly divided into two timespans: Victorian period is from 1841 to early 1900s while Edwardian period is from the early 1900s to the 1920s. These two periods have similar but different archi-

tectural styles, which both Victorian and Edwardian styles are commonly reflected in the designs of colonial buildings in Hong Kong. In the following essay, three significant sites that were heavily influenced by colonization would be evaluated, namely Tai Kwun, St. John’s Cathedral and The Former French Mission Building. By evaluating their exterior architectural design and structure with typical Victorian or Edwardian styles, the essay aims to investigate to what extent colonization had an impact on colonial buildings in terms of the architectural form and design. St. John’s Cathedral was built in 1849, it is not only the oldest cathedral in Hong Kong but also the oldest Anglican church in the Far East. In early days, the cathedral was used by the British army only, as a place for religious services. However, during World War II, it became a Japanese clubhouse and was gradually restored to its original functions after the occupation. It is built in the shape of a cross. The architectural style is unique

among the surroundings in Central, such as the Bank of China Tower, HSBC Building and other skyscrapers. St. John’s Cathedral can be identified as a Victorian-Gothic style building. English Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that happened in the mid-18th century in England. The movement had its expansion in the early 19th century, such that the traditional Gothic styles had been brought to Hong Kong since 1842. Victorian-Gothic style draws upon features of medieval examples such as decorative patterns, decorative finials, lancet windows, and hood moulds (phmc. state.pa.us 2015). Pointed arches are acted as both decorative elements and as window shape, the roofs are mostly steeply pitched and the exterior structure is castle-like with high style buildings. These features are all reflected in St. John’s Cathedral: it has lancet arches and colourfully stained-glass windows (Got, 2016) which highly adapted the typical Gothic features. However, there are plenty of features unadopted by St. John’s Cathedral. Although the beautifully decorated interior

matches with Gothic stained decorations, these elements were not intentionally designed, but were put into the building since the cathedral was used as a club by Japanese during the war (Gavin, 2021). Another aspect would be the materials, Gothic Cathedrals are commonly built in iron and stone, while St. John’s Cathedral is fashioned from stucco and wood (Emma, n.a.). This is because of Hong Kong’s lower quality of life compared with European countries in the 19th century, as well as the inconvenience in transporting these heavy materials. Besides, Gothic style buildings have gables heavily decorated with incised trim or topped with finials or cross bracing, the Carpenter Gothic buildings also have distinctive boards as vertical siding, porches with turned posts or columns are a common feature as well. Due to the religious function of St. John’s Cathedral, and the Eastern influences of Hong Kong, the building does not include too many decorative elements but it is kept clean from the outside with only a few distinctive main features of

Gothic architecture. Also, to adapt to subtropical climates in Hong Kong, the windows of St. John’s Cathedral has window shutters that allow them to be opened. This is relatively rare in typical European Gothic architecture as the windows are mostly for decoration solely. As there are geographic restrictions and social influences, only a few main Gothic characteristics are reflected in the design of St. John’s Cathedral. Therefore, colonization influenced the architectural form of St. John’s Cathedral to a relatively small extent. By the end of the 19th century, Gothic had begun to fall out of fashion and Victorian style had become the preeminent architectural style used by England, hence this time period is classified as Victorian Era. One significant example being built in Hong Kong during this era would be Tai Kwun. It is located at the eastern end of Hollywood Road in Central, as the former Central Police Station of Hong Kong and is now redeveloped into a cultural and shopping destination. The Brit-

ish built some of the first colonial structures at the site of the Central Police Station which are the three declared monuments: the former Central Police Station, the former Central Magistracy and The Victoria Prison Compound. The Headquarters Block of the Central Police Station used grand Roman arches and Greek columns to show the authority of the police (Got, 2016), this shows mixed styles were adopted in Tai Kwun. However, the discussion below would focus on the Barrack Block which is a part of The Victoria Prison Compound. The Barrack Block was constructed next to the Victoria Prison in 1864, it is the oldest structure within the site. After a modification in 1905, the block became a structure with 4 storeys while the roof remains a pyramidal timber-structure (Hong Kong Memory, 2014). This modification is due to the large population that moved from mainland China to Hong Kong during the period, such that police stations have to be enlarged in order to maintain law in the increasing population (Emma, n.a.). The architectural style of the

Barrack Block can be identified as Victorian style. The Victorian era was a period that shows society of increasing wealth facilitated by the Industrial Revolution, with an increasing number of middle class (Hohenadel, 2020). Victorian architecture spanned more than 60 years and encompasses a lot of overlapping styles, for instance Gothic Revival, Folk Victorian and Greek Revival etc. These styles are mixed and are adopted in the design of the Barrack Block. Back to the design of the Barrack Block, the façade can be divided into five horizontal sections. The designs are symmetrical with the central, eastern and western sections protuberant, while the remaining two sections are slightly indented. This feature of symmetry is however contradictory to the typical Victorian architecture. All floors, except the Eastern and Western edges, feature expansive verandas to facilitate ventilation while shielding the interior from sunlight and rain. Roman vaults are adopted at the verandas on the ground floor and 1st floor, which helps distribute the weight to the columns on

the sides. The verandas on the 2nd and 3rd floors are partitioned by Doric columns, the stone candle holders from the past still featured on the verandas, which were used for burning candles for illumination. In the aspect of material, the foundation and the stairs of the building are built using granite while the floor plates are brick structures. This is a feature of early colonial architecture. The anterior of the building is supported by a buttress, which was possibly added after the war to support the damaged building structure. Although the architectural form of the Barrack Block cannot be identified as one specific style but a mixture of few, it can be concluded that the Barrack Block’s design is influenced by British colonization to a large extent. From the early 1900s to 1920, Hong Kong experienced the Edwardian period. The former French Mission Building is one of the most impressive architectural masterpieces from the Edwardian period in Hong Kong (Got, 2016). It is located on Battery Path in

Central and was built in 1917 by the French Society of Foreign Missions as its Procure of Hong Kong (amo.gov.hk 2020). Shortly before the Second World War, it was used by the government. It had a short stint of being the headquarters of the Provisional Hong Kong Government after the war ended. The Former French Mission Building can be classified as Edwardian style. Edwardian architecture is generally less ornate than Victorian architecture. In terms of the materials, red brickwork is commonly used and is the main material to construct the Former French Mission Building. Apart from that, Edwardian architecture usually has less complex decorative patterns that both wallpaper and curtain designs became plainer (Mason, 2019). This is adopted by the Former French Mission Building as well that there are only simple internal decorative features. Dating from the Edwardian period, the Former French Mission Building had three storeys, with a Neoclassical-style basement constructed in granite and red bricks. A chapel is incorporated in the north-

west corner, where its cupola projects above the roof. It has undergone several alterations since the Second World War, but many historical architectural features can still be seen in the building. For example, the hall on the ground floor with its ornate columns, wooden staircase and vaulted ceiling and the well-proportioned inner courtyard qualify the building as one of the finest pieces of Edwardian historical architecture in Hong Kong. However, a few characteristics of Edwardian architecture such as porches with wooden frames and mock-tudor cladding at the top of the house cannot be seen in the Former French Mission Building’s design. To synthesize, the building was influenced by British colonization to a large extent, given that the typical major features of Edwardian architecture were adopted in the architectural form. In conclusion, British colonization has influenced St. John’s Cathedral to a small extent, while it had an impact on Tai Kwun and the Former French Mission Building to a large

extent. Even though a lot of the typical features from various architectural forms are used in the three significant buildings, they are still partly affected by the local social background and geographic limitations etc. of Hong Kong. Therefore, it is nearly impossible to have an architecture fully influenced by western culture, even if it was under the colonial period.

Notes 1.

2. 3.

6. 7.

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The Modern Architecture Guidebook Hong Kong’s built environment represents a unique site of inquiry in the global history of the Modern Movement. The Modern Architecture guidebook series draw from an inter-disciplinary toolkit of knowledge, references, and field studies to understand the processes at work in the built environment. Each walking tour in the series begins with one of the 98 MTR stations in Hong Kong as the meeting point. First opened in 1979, this modernist infrastructure has produced a city rationalized around transportoriented development. Organized around key themes (industrialization, colonization, environment, internationalization, migration, decolonization, counterculture, and globalization), the guidebooks present a critical yet open perspective towards the implications of large-scale modernist schemes on the environment and community.