Sham Shui Po is Kowloon's heart of darkness, famous for its dilapidated buildings, cheap electronics and clothing shops. Yet for two months until May, the grey-looking area takes centre stage in a colourful project that brings art into the community.
Last Sunday, for instance, a group of arts students led by Michael Townsend turned the junction of Cheung Wah Street and Castle Peak Road into a bright spot by plastering over the cluster of old shop shutters with colourful tapes.
The American artist is among the 16 artist groups - half are local, the rest from overseas - taking part in 4x4, the second Hong Kong International Artists' Workshop.
Organised by the Artists in Residence (AiR) Association, the programme is split into two sessions. The first part, which runs through this month, features four overseas artists: New York-based Townsend, Shahram Entekhabi from Germany, Abhinandita Mathur from India and Bundith Phunsombatlert from Thailand. Their local counterparts include artist duo Cheng Yee-man and
Clara Cheung (also known as Gum+Clara), Law Man-lok, Angela Su and Tse Pak-chai.
The second session, which starts on April 26, will host Eve Armstrong from New Zealand, Sandra Nakamura from Peru, Michelle Brand from Britain and Alwin Reamillo from Australia and Hong Kong's Kurt Chan Yuk-keung, Paul Chu, Sara Tse and Adrian Wong.
