I recently had the pleasure of attending the annual Hong Kong Book Fair, hosted at the impressively designed Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center from July 17th to the 23rd.
It was the 34th year of the Book Fair, with the very first being held in 1990, although this was my first visit. The organizer, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, has always been striving to promote local reading culture and each year has a different theme with the theme for this year being "Film and Television Literature” as it featured a selection of literary works and books related to the film and television industries.
The reason why I chose to attend this year, was because I felt that I had two ‘horses’ in the race so to speak. This means that whilst I personally did not have a stall or a book to promote, there were two different collaborations that I have been involved with who would be exhibiting something related to my artwork at the show.
In my previous life as a toy designer, I have previously visited the Hong Kong Toy Fair and also recently I had the pleasure to exhibit some of my artworks at the ‘Affordable Art Fair’. Both of these events took place at the same venue. However, these previous events seemed to be dwarfed by the sheer size and popularity of the Book Fair.
Everything felt different and slightly ominous. From the barricaded walk from the MTR station to the venue, it felt like the event organizers had been anticipating and planning for a large volume of visitors judging from the metal fences lining the route. Entry into the venue took a long snaking path around areas I had not previously seen, although obtaining a ticket was not a problem as one could simply pay at the gate with the ever trusty ‘Octopus card’ which every person in Hong Kong seemed to have now. The entrance fee is a modest HK$ 30 which seems to be a reasonable price that doesn’t deter too many people and the entry process seemed to be suitably fast-tracked and efficient.
What struck me was the sheer number of local people attending the fair, not just industry types and the number of teenagers and children. In this highly digital age, I felt quite surprised and also a little relieved to see so many youngsters browsing and reading the many books on display on the hundreds of stands. There does still seem to be some tangible tactile quality to having a real ‘book’ in one's hand. I did have to laugh to myself a few times as I was repeatedly approached by event interviewers who seemed overly keen to get my opinion of the fair as a visiting ‘foreigner’. I did feel slightly bad for them when I saw the look of disappointment on their faces as I informed them that I am actually a Hong Konger too!
In previous years, the Hong Kong Book Fair has attracted over a million visitors over the course of its 5- 7 days opening with a record 1.04 million visitors being recorded in 2018. It was canceled for two years during the pandemic, but 850,000 people visited when the fair reopened again in 2022.
So as I mentioned, I did have a self-serving reason for attending the fair. My first stop was to the Hall on the 3rd floor that had the theme name ‘Children’s Paradise’ to visit a booth hosted by ‘Seeds’ which is a children’s bookstore with whom I have been collaborating for some time. They stock a number of my A6 size postcards featuring several of my most popular artworks at their 2 locations. It was so nice to see their display of my postcards at their stall as well as the large poster they had produced featuring my ‘Dragon Tram’ watercolour painted which they proudly displayed at the front of their booth. I did offer to sign a few postcards to some potential browsing customers but I think I may have scared them off! Only later when the manager of the booth explained to them who I was did I see smiles of recognition. Not a problem though.
My next stop was to visit Hall 1 on the lower level where my 2nd ‘horse’ in this race was, that being the Orange News Stand which is a local digital media platform. I was lucky enough to be video interviewed by their HK Eye team recently which is their dedicated English Channel. Orange News and HK Eye decided to publish a book featuring 12 interviews with foreigners who have decided to make Hong Kong their home. The title of the book is called ‘Hong Away From Home’ and my interview appears in print form alongside several of my artworks, which is a real honor and a pleasure. I was also happy to discover that my illustrations also appear on the front and back of the book cover. If you would like to see my video interview, feel free to check out the link here:
Overall, it was an eye-opening experience visiting the book fair this year. I have a newfound appreciation for the size and importance of the event and a new understanding of how local Hong Kong people still value print media. It has also planted a few seeds in my own mind about possible future collaborations and projects. It also makes me want to switch off my phone, computer, and TV and curl up with a good book too!
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