In an era of rapid change in this city, there are still people willing to pause and capture the disappearing landscapes with their paintbrush. Richie Cheung is one such artist who meticulously feels the pulse of Hong Kong through his sketches. His debut collection “Inking Cities Hong Kong,” published by the long-standing Hong Kong publisher Chen Xiang’s Books Limited, uses ink sketches to document folk festivals, old village districts, and tender human stories, preserving precious records of fading aspects of Hong Kong.
Since 2018, urban sketching has become Richie Cheung’s new hobby. He has become a core member of the sketching group “Drawing Stuff,” saying, “Every weekend, I pick up my drawing tools and head out to sketch as much as I can.” In his spare time, he roams the streets of all eighteen districts of Hong Kong, capturing not only lively festival scenes but also the vanishing corners of the city – tin shacks, old villages, and communities on the verge of demolition. This dedication has not only produced a wealth of artwork but also allowed him to venture into many locales and communities that are usually hard to access.
“Taking a photo freezes a moment, while painting allows me to encapsulate my emotions,” Cheung explains. He prefers to sit quietly on the streets, not rushing to draw, but taking the time to feel the changing light, the scent of the air, the conversations of residents… and then letting his brush flow on the paper.
Flipping through “Inking Cities,” it feels like walking into the sketching scenes with Richie Cheung. Each artwork hides an unforgettable story under his brush. Every on-site sketching session is accompanied by unique memories – warmly welcomed neighbors, passersby initiating conversations, kind-hearted souls silently bringing chairs to him, residents sharing the bittersweet stories of the neighborhood, and even someone half-jokingly asking for “portrait rights fees.” All these moments become the irreplaceable emotional backdrop of his artworks.
Once, while sketching at Wu Song Street Market in Yau Ma Tei, after enjoying a delicious dish of Chicken Silk Double Chow Mein at Lian Cheng Fat, the shop owner, Mr. Jiang, brought a stool and offered a bottle of water, insisting not to take any payment for the meal. Cheung recalls, “Mr. Jiang is thin, hardworking, always smiling, not afraid of losses, and very kind to people. Since then, my wife and I have become regulars there, but when it comes to payment, both he and I insist in our own ways: I pay more, while he charges less.” This bond formed through sketching remains warm even when looked back upon years later.
In Cheung’s eyes, sketching spots in Hong Kong are everywhere, each street and alley hiding surprises. “My favorite painting is of Fuk Wing Street in Sham Shui Po, a toy street that transforms with each festival, bright red during Chinese New Year, filled with lanterns and toys during the Mid-Autumn Festival.” The vibrancy and changes in Fuk Wing Street perfectly capture the city’s dynamism and vitality.
At the affordable rice shop on Tsat Tsz Mui Road in North Point, rice is still sold in bulk, with the shop owner busy measuring out rice, while in the small hardware repair shop on Tai Wong Street East in Wan Chai, rare craftsmanship tools are still preserved. When visiting Aberdeen, Cheung describes the Quan Kee Shipyard specializing in repairing sampans and small boats: “Entering there, walking on the wet wooden boards, with makeshift shelters overhead, dogs roaming around, the sound of dripping water, everything seems frozen in time.” He reflects that with the decline of shipbuilding and repair industries, places like this will eventually become a thing of the past, but at least he can capture them in his drawings.
Among many festival events recorded, the one at Po Toi Island is undeniably the most stunning. “The stage set up there is truly extravagant, built on uneven cliffs, reaching three to four stories high!” Cheung still expresses excitement when recalling it. The construction of the stage on Po Toi Island is handled by the renowned set designer Master Chan Yuk Kwong’s team, entirely built by hand with bamboo and ropes on the sheer cliffs, solid and impressive.
“If people like Master Chan and his team don’t keep making these, these stages will disappear soon.” As more places switch to using aluminum frames, traditional bamboo construction techniques are facing the risk of being phased out. Cheung deeply understands that these structures built by hand are an indispensable part of Hong Kong’s culture.
The Chen Xiang’s Bookstore that supported the publication of “Inking Cities” itself continues a chapter of an old Hong Kong story. Founded by Chen Xiang in 1946, the bookstore started from a book stall, later becoming a well-known hub for distributing martial arts novels by famous authors like Siu Ma Ling and Gu Long. Now run by the second generation, they handle publishing and stationery sales, quietly continuing to write history in their two small shops in Wan Chai.
“Chen Xiang’s is run by my classmate’s family, so this collaboration feels special,” Cheung smiles. Moving from an old bookstore to vanishing industries, he ignites a gentle light in the tiniest corners of the city with his paintbrush.
These old industries may disappear in the near future, but Richie Cheung is not just painting; he is also recording the imprint of an era. “Many of the tin shacks have already been tagged for demolition, they just haven’t been officially torn down yet,” Cheung explains. These places feel like a race against time, and the locations he sketches most include Nga Tsin Wai, Tea Garden Hill, and Yau Ma Tei Fruit Market – each a soon-to-be historical landscape.
The area around Nga Tsin Wai is serene but carries a sense of age and experience. “The environment there is really tough, with buildings packed closely together and poor air circulation.” But the complexity and myriad lines of the tin shacks make them ideal subjects for painters like Cheung. “The more lines there are, the better it is to draw,” he quips.
Tea Garden Hill, slated for demolition, has evolved from an ancient quarry into a village. It witnessed the transition from prosperity to decline, and aside from the dense tin shacks, there were vibrant festivities like the Tin Hau Festival, all crucial subjects in Cheung’s sketches. He hopes this history and folk traditions can be remembered by future generations.
As per the Housing Authority’s plan, the over half-century-old Garden Mansion in Kwun Tong will also be demolished and rebuilt. The last artwork in his book depicts a corner of Garden Mansion. It shows a view looking up at the densely built structures leaving a circle in the sky. “While painting this, I remember the bright blue sky I saw at that moment, making me particularly joyful,” Cheung reflects. Perhaps we cannot stop the historical wheel of vanishing old districts, but what we can grasp is the recording of the emotions and scenes of that moment.
As he sketches, Richie Cheung also paints his childhood memories – those pure years spent in Kam Tin. “When I was young, living in Kam Tin, every time the Great Lord’s Festival came around, the village would set up stages and prepare lavish feasts.” Cheung fondly recalls, “Just take a bowl, and you could get a bowlful of delicious food under the stage, it was so lively.” Nearby, vendors sold orange-colored pig intestines, cart noodles, and sugary pancakes, becoming the everlasting flavors in his memory.
The towering stages were not only the theater for troupe performances but also the playground for kids. “We would crawl around underneath the stage, in the pitch dark, like explorers.” In the era without cellphones and game consoles, a bowl of sweet soup, a cotton candy, and a night of adventures under the stage were their simplest and happiest childhood pleasures. These nostalgic memories resurface with his brush, each stroke bringing back bits of life stories onto paper.
Now retired and living in Thailand, Richie Cheung shares, “Publishing ‘Inking Cities’ fulfills a dream of mine, and I also wanted this book to be unique. For the copies given to friends, I personally draw different Hong Kong-themed artworks on the book’s front pages, hoping to bring some surprises and increase its collectible value.”#
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