works as an independent cultural producer, curator, and cultural writer based in Vienna. She is the founder and programme director of city transit Asia-Europe, a platform for art exchange, urban discourse, and research cooperation between Asian and European cities.
The creative city has become the buzzword on the agenda of many city governments, economic developers, and cultural planners since Charles Landry introduced this idea in his book “The Creative City: A Toolkit for Urban Innovators” in 2000.
After the handover, Hong Kong has sought to brand itself as “Asia’s World City”. Several historical features have been demolished – or “reclaimed” – to make way for shopping malls, high-rise apartment blocks, traditional Chinese architecture, and tourist kitsch. The result, says Huilary Tsui, is just another Asian megalopolis. Nevertheless, a new culture of public opposition to heritage-hostile urban planning is taking root.
