One Late Afternoon in Kowloon '23

This documentary photo series was captured in 2019 during a two-week trip toHong Kong; and later brought to life as a collection of C-Type Handprints in London, 2023.

Once an ungoverned enclave within Kowloon City, the Kowloon Walled City stood as a densely populated maze of interconnected buildings. Originally a Chinese military fort, it evolved into a lawless settlement following the 1898 lease of the New Territories to Britain. By 1990, its 2.6-hectare expanse housed over 50,000 residents, operating under its own chaotic yet self-sustaining system.

For decades, the city was infamous for its labyrinthine alleys, illicit trades, and triad-controlled operations. In 1987, the Hong Kong government announced its demolition, a process that unfolded between 1993 and 1994, erasing the once-thriving, anarchic microcosm from the map.

This series explores what remains within the city’s former boundaries today, capturing echoes of its past in the traces left behind.