The reading is mainly about the relationship between the architecture in Hong Kong and disappearance, which is quite thought-provoking. Disappearance here refers to the vanishing cultural identity towards the place you live in. Tai Kwun in Central is a typical example, which was turned from a police station and jail to an arts center. What we should focus on is not the preservation of the physical appearance of the building, but the colonial history behind the building, which records the transformation of Hong Kong from a small fishing village to an international metropolis. Due to limited space in Hong Kong, it is inevitable to dismantle old buildings. However, others may think Hong Kong people are money supremacists due to the skyscrapers around. From now on, we can work to homogenize the past culture and modernity, so the history and features of Hong Kong can be preserved.
Poon Ho Ting, 3035800904
It is rather difficult to find relevance of your response to Abbas’ text. When you talked about preservation, Abbas is “against the use of preservation as history to bring about the disappearance of history” (1997, 66). In a way, the text is the author’s attempt to re-evaluate different images of Hong Kong via various forms of disappearance and phenomenon. When you cited Tai Kwun, the former Victoria Prison as an example, how did it record the colonial history of Hong Kong’s transformation from a small fishing village to an international metropolis? Why is it important to preserve colonial history?
You then moved on to discuss about limited space which could possibly relate to Abbas’ idea of Hyperdensity – “Hyperdensity is partly the result of limited space, but it is also a result of how this limited space could be exploited for economic gain.” (1997, 86). Therefore, I would argue that in Abbas’ words, it is not inevitable to dismantle old buildings, but it is possible that it’s one of developer’s trick to create such narrative to make profit.
It would be helpful to have a closer reference to the text to convey your ideas.