The year 2022 marks both the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return from British colonial rule to China and the half-way point of the fifty-year grace period until 2047, when the “one country, two systems” policy was agreed to expire and end Hong Kong’s autonomy. Hong Kong-based photographer Birdy Chu regards this important year as an ideal moment to take a look back at Hong Kong in 1997. Given the hindsight of history, especially considering the more recent developments of the past several years, the images of Hong Kong during its last days as part of the British empire have taken on entirely new layers of meaning. Birdy Chu’s photobook manages the difficult feat of eliciting feelings of nostalgia, hope, resignation, disbelief and compassion at the same time.

“This photographic work witnessed the transformation of our landscape, our social development, and also the people’s feelings that year in this place once known as the ‘Pearl of the Orient.’”
― from Birdy Chu’s afterword

All texts included in Chinese, English and Japanese.

-Book Size
200 × 200 mm
-Pages
120 pages, 92 images
-Binding
Hardcover
-Publication Year
2022
-Language
English, Japanese, Chinese
-Limited Edition
600
-ISBN
978-4-910244-15-0

Artist Profile

Birdy Chu

Birdy Chu is a photographer, video artist, and documentary filmmaker; he graduated from Hong Kong polytechnic University with a BA in Design, and further studied film and video production and advanced photography in Canada. Birdy has worked as a photojournalis, video director, lecturer, and curator. He obtained his Master in Visual Art Administration and founded "Art Casa", an organization that promotes art and photography education.

His photography and films have beeb exhibited in many cities and selected for the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Biennial Awards 2009, National Geographic Photo Contest 2012, Hong Kong Art Prize 2013, and Hong Kong Human Rights Art Prize 2015. He has also won the Most Popular Mobile Film Award at the Hong Kong Mobile Film Festival 2016.

Birdy employs visual images to show his concerns over social development and leaves evidence of our ever-changing world.