The Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate was constructed in the 1960s as one of Hong Kong’s earliest public housing developments. Just prior to its scheduled demolition four decades later, John Choy was commissioned to photograph the soon-to-be deserted estate. To his surprise, Choy found himself deeply affected by the crumbling housing blocks and their residents. He became determined to create an in-depth record of not just the estate, but a unique way of life.
Created over a period of a year, Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate gives a sense of how the human spirit transcends the narrow physical confines of the man-made environment. By keeping the spotlight firmly and intimately on the estate’s residents, Choy’s photographs build an unusually full impression of individual subjects and the bonds between them.
About the photographer
Currently a freelance photographer, John Choy was born in Hong Kong in 1966. From 1989 to 2001, he worked as a photographer for a series of local newspapers and magazines, as well as the government’s Information Services Department. Along the way, he encountered people from all walks of life, and their stories in turn provided him with inspiration. As a photographer, Choy is obsessed with the ‘unseen landscapes’ of the city, and documenting these using experimental new techniques and forms of expression. | |
