Hong Kong Tiling Culture

Tile is a material that use to cover surface, it is popular and common to see in Hong Kong local especially for building wall finish. Tiles are visible all over the world but the distinctive context, function, and design are forms a unique identity and local aesthetic of Hong Kong.

Before the 1970s, tile is not imported in Hong Kong market and most of the building in Hong Kong applied paint to do the external wall finish, but the negative aspect of paint is it peels and fades over the years, and it needs to repaint every 3–5 years. Tile is replaced paint and became popular in the 1970s, it is easy to apply with unskilled labor, heat resistance, glazed surface avoids dirt and mould buildup. As Hong Kong is controlling cost on built in that period, tile is lower construction cost and sustainability which broadly used on the building surface.

Despite the tiles has so much positive aspect, one downside of it is if the tile drops down from the top level of the building, it easily cause damage to anything down below, and instead of mosaic tile, large ceramic tile is created to cover the building. The color of tile used in the building usually simple, commonly single color or two colors, and tend cool tone. The design is without considering, repetition of the pattern and texture, however, this kind of design creates a unique identical feature to Hong Kong and forms a distinctive tiles city.

Housing in Cheung Chau Island mostly covered by tiles, compare to the crowd city area, tiles here are more colorful and design in different style.

McCarroll said ‘Remember where we’re living — tiles are a great way of making space cooler and they’re easy to keep clean.’(Peacock.L,2007) As Cheung Chau Island is hotter than the city and the function of tiles is ideal for a house built, which is to prevent weather change, and also tiles need low budget, people here do not have a high income, the island is counting on fishing and tourism for their livelihood. Tiles in Cheung Chau Island has various pattern and color, for example, contrast color and shape, repetition of color and shape, flat and square tiles, ceramic tiles and mosaic tiles etc. Any tiles style is allowed to find in this island and sufficiently describe as tiles island.

Compare to the exterior, the interior of the housing normally use mosaic tiles, small and simplicity. Even so, Cheung Chau Island has many unique tiles wall, such as bubble shape wall in the souvenir shop, collage style large tiles covering housing wall, bright red mosaic with clear glazed surface decorated on traditional design entry, combines the modernity and cultural design into one, demonstrating the distinctive Cheung Chau Island design feature.

There are many old housing with traditional tiles wall design, representing the past generation and historical remains. The tiles wall feature is integrated with the island, linking the past and present, demonstrates a particular local aesthetic of Cheung Chau Island, also portrays the fishing village and maintains the active atmosphere.

Beside using tiles on the wall, it’s also applied to the public area in Hong Kong. Previously mentioned titles are low cost and durability, tiles on public space as shown in the following image, it could utilize in fence, chair and wheelchair passageway, once again reinforces the value of tiles.

Each of the metro station in Hong Kong is been designed to use different color tiles, Tsim Sha Tsui is yellow and black, Yau Ma Tei is grey, Admiralty is blue, and Central is brown and red etc. Hong Kong Metro started to operate in the 1970s and the underground platform is dark and sunless, ‘With no windows or natural light, underground platforms can be gloomy. Bright colors are associated with beauty, and they bring a dash of that to the mostly subterranean stations.’(South China Morning Post, 2016) Furthermore, another intention of utilizing different color in each of the station is helping people to differentiate the metro station and giving them identity, as Mead says ‘back in the 1970s, there was still a high level of illiteracy’(South China Morning Post, 2016). Moreover, successive station avoiding using same tone color as preventing people mistaking, such as Tsuen Wan line, Sham Shui Po station is green, Prince Edward station is light brown and Mong Kok is grey and Tsui Sha Tsui is yellow. The name of the station is also related to the select of tile’s color, for example, Ho Man Tin station is close to the hill so the station cover by green tiles and Admiralty is blue tiles as it needs to pass through the sea, which is an interesting way to determine the station identity color.

In the other hand, tiles have many different purposes and in this case, tiles stand as art material to create artwork. breaking or cutting the tiles could bring an unexpected reason and in the artwork ‘My Home’ by Chu Hung, found in Yau Ma Tei Metro station is using various color and texture of tiles to illustrate the artwork and portrayed a pixelated style. It is impressive and demonstrates the small piece of tile is useful and makes each piece meaningful. Moreover, tiles artwork is also found in front of the school in Admiralty and Cheung Chau Island, conveying the message of local people have so many possible to work with tiles and beautify their resident area.

Most of the Cha Chaan Teng(traditional Hong Kong style Cafe) interior is covered up by tiles, illustrated a nostalgia atmosphere, the tiling aesthetic seems like leading customers back to the past, experiences the traditional local culture. Furthermore, the vintage and granny chic style of tiling decoration makes Cha Chaan Teng value and this nostalgia feeling contributes a significance to Hong Kong aesthetic feature.

Tiles are the material that people could discover anywhere, however, it is meaningful to Hong Kong, it stands an important role to illustrate Hong Kong feature, it recorded historical context and remains from the past, eventually forms a distinctive Hong Kong urban identity, and significant presents as visual culture.

By Lingwei Wu

Reference

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/147416991@N02/

South China Morning Post, 2016, Why every Hong Kong MTR station is a different colour — the reason may surprise you, viewed 23rd February 2017,Hong Kong, <http://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/2051751/why-every-hong-kong-mtr-station-different-colour-reason-may>

Peacock.L,2007, Tiling In Style, viewed 23rd February 2017, <http://www.scmp.com/article/590617/tiling-style>

Wong.M, 2011, Another look at Hong Kong’s mosaic tiled buildings, viewed 23rd February 2017, <https://www.checkerboardhill.com/2011/07/hong-kong-building-walls-mosaic-tile/>