Tracing Hong Kong's history
In 1997, the territory of Hong Kong was handed over to China after more than 150 years under British rule. Twenty years later, young artists are documenting the decay of colonial-era buildings.
Urban time travel
To access the premises of an abandoned British army barracks, these self-proclaimed "big city explorers" must wiggle through a hole in a wire mesh fence. It is the beginning of a trip through Hong Kong's past.
Caught between ruins
The dilapidated remains of buildings emerge behind the fence - where British soldiers once were housed, there is silence, empty rooms and smashed windows. The urban explorers want to make sure these scenes and the history that shaped them aren't forgotten.
Lost places
The explorers delve into the barracks' farthest, darkest corners, always on the lookout for so-called "lost places" they can photograph or film for posterity. They are hot on the heels of the global "urban exploration" trend.
Caps and masks
The exploratory tours through colonial-era homes, military properties and public buildings are for the most part clandestine, and not authorized. To avoid hassles from Hong Kong authorities, the young artists keep their identities secret and hide their faces behind masks.
In the heart of the financial district
St. John's Cathedral is one of more than 1,000 historic buildings languishing in the shadows of the towering Hong Kong skyline. Only 114 buildings are listed as protected, and even fewer are actually being restored. The urban explorers urge more commitment, appealing to the authorities to actively restore structures that are part of the city's identity.
Unique legacy
Why document the state of Hong Kong's colonial-era buildings? Wedged between looming skyscrapers and bustling vegetable stalls, many are slowly decaying. In 20 years, not much will be left of Hong Kong's unique legacy and its architecture, one of the urban explorer group's co-founders fears.
History in print
Sometimes, the exploring artists find unique colonial-era documents, like this 1982 newspaper, which shines a light on the history of a British crown colony that had difficult relations with communist China and ambivalent feelings toward London.
Faded glory
The Hong Kong urban explorers have visited and documented more than 50 colonial-era sites, including this almost 100-year-old mansion. The photographs and videos are posted on the Internet. They may not all recall Hong Kong's complicated political and military history, but they bear silent witness to a bygone era.