When I feel down I take a train to the Happy Valley, Pierfrancesco Celada

Hong Kong is a place of strong contrasts; a claustrophobic urban environment surrounded by water and uncontained nature. I lived in Hong Kong with my family for eight years, from October 2014 to May 2022.

Occasionally, while walking in the city, you could spot a tram go past; its destination sign reading “Happy Valley”, its terminal stop. In those moments, when you feel the weight of the city on your shoulders, I like to imagine that it does offer a sense of hope. With the aid of visual metaphors, I have analysed my own relationship with the city, with the intent of drawing a portraiture of Hong Kong and its complex and multilayered realities.
-Pierfrancesco Celada