Graffiti & public art

Alongside the gallery-based contemporary art scene already covered in our arts scene guide, Hong Kong has a growing, more publicly visible layer of murals and street art, ranging from grassroots to officially commissioned.

Where murals have grown

Sheung Wan, parts of Central near PMQ, and pockets of Kowloon have seen a steady increase in mural and street-art commissions over the past decade, often on the sides of older buildings otherwise slated for redevelopment.

Government and district-led initiatives

Some public art has been formally commissioned as part of district revitalisation efforts, distinct from unsanctioned graffiti — worth knowing the difference, since the two coexist but aren't the same category.

King of Kowloon

Hong Kong's best-known graffiti figure historically wasn't a contemporary street artist at all — Tsang Tsou-choi, known as the "King of Kowloon," covered public surfaces across the city for decades with calligraphy asserting a personal claim to land he believed his family had lost, now recognised retrospectively as an important outsider-art figure, with a small number of surviving pieces preserved.

Where to look

A walk through Sheung Wan or the PMQ area (see our fashion & design guide) remains one of the most reliable ways to encounter current work in its original setting.