Hong Kong Environmental Photography · 2014

Hong Kong Light-Pollution Photography

The process and public record behind Light Encroached Homes / 光染民居.

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Low-angle fisheye photograph of illuminated advertising signs and residential buildings around the Mong Kok night sky.
Light Encroached Homes / 光染民居, Mong Kok, Hong Kong, 2014. © Ricky Kwok.

Artwork Facts

Light Encroached Homes / 光染民居

  • Artist: Ricky Kwok / Kwok Man Tai / 郭文棣
  • Year: 2014
  • Location: Mong Kok, Hong Kong
  • Artwork type: Photograph
  • Capture: Fisheye lens, ultra-low angle from street level, at about 10 p.m.
  • Series: City Light
  • Recognition: Champion, HKU Light Pollution Photography Competition 2014; selected from 154 entries
  • Copyright: © Ricky Kwok. Permission is required for reproduction.
  • Acquisition status: Contact the studio to confirm current availability, format and terms.
  • Licensing status: Editorial, publication, exhibition and commercial requests are considered by written agreement.

View the permanent artwork record.

Historical Account

Finding the viewpoint in Mong Kok.

The first-person account below is adapted from Ricky Kwok's statement published by The University of Hong Kong in 2014. It preserves the documented circumstances without presenting a new recollection.

At about 10 p.m., I lay on my back on a Mong Kok street and used a fisheye lens to photograph upward from ground level. The low viewpoint gathered the district's many signs around the sky.

Before entering the competition, I had not paid close attention to Hong Kong's light-pollution conditions. Walking and observing for the project made the number of signs—and their proximity to homes—more visible to me. I began to think about residents trying to sleep while exposed to light from advertising signs.

Read Ricky Kwok's original 2014 statement in the HKU record.

Institutional Record

Result, interpretation and exhibition.

The claims below are tied to a public record from The University of Hong Kong dated May 29, 2014.

Competition result

HKU records Kwok Man Tai / 郭文棣 as champion of the 2014 Light Pollution Photography Competition for 光染民居. The competition received 154 entries.

Judge's interpretation

Judge Lau Chi-fung interpreted the photograph as conveying how intense advertising light near homes could prevent residents from sleeping and as emphasizing the urgency of regulating light pollution and light nuisance.

Exhibition record

HKU announced that outstanding works from the competitions would be presented in a free exhibition in the Hong Kong Space Museum lobby from July 9 to August 11, 2014.

View the official HKU sourceReview selected awards and distinctions

Rights and Requests

One work, three distinct pathways.

No edition size, print format or price is asserted on this page. The studio will confirm current artwork status before any acquisition discussion proceeds.