London has long been a magnet for artists from around the world, but in August, a group exhibition in New Cross gave the city’s creative scene a distinctly Hong Kong voice.
More than 200,000 Hong Kong citizens have moved to the UK under the BN(O) visa scheme since 2021, many under growing political pressure from China.
Blue Days in the UK, held at hARTslane Gallery, brought together six Hong Kong illustrators and artists who have recently made the UK their home, or are in the process of doing so.
Koong, the organiser, said the theme grew out of his reflections on his first year in Britain.
He wanted the exhibition to capture the “low-pressure” emotions of loneliness, difficulty in adapting, and occasional waves of homesickness he and many Hongkongers felt.
Different styles, shared memories
Much of the exhibition circles back to homesickness.
Koong’s PARK series evokes the warmth and safety of Hong Kong’s public green spaces, putting feelings into artwork, and inviting audiences to interact with them.
He hoped to spark empathy and connection, to serve as a reminder walking together is always easier than walking alone.
Rick Lo combined bold drawings with AR technology, allowing audiences to interact with his work through their phones.
His series captured the vanishing symbols of Hong Kong such as neon lights being dismantled, Kai Tak Airport fading into history, and passengers departing on planes to uncertain destinations.
His images acknowledged loss, but also emphasised adaptation, reminding viewers it is possible to live bravely and hopefully even in displacement.
Growing with painful experience
Lotte Siu presented Home Stories, a series based on the real-life experiences of Hong Kong migrants, with one of them being an interactive puzzle tower.
Each cube painted with images on all six sides, visitors were invited to dismantle and rebuild the tower, but never complete every picture perfectly, it was a metaphor for the imperfection of life.
For Lotte, the burdens and melancholy of starting over in a new country may never fully disappear, but she sees them as weights which can be carried while continuing to create.
Lam Pei highlighted the tensions of starting again, contrasting the frustrations of cultural and language barriers with moments of serenity she has found in Britain’s slower pace of life.
She said living abroad can feel like losing the ability to express yourself, as though emotions vanish when forced through an unfamiliar language.
She translates that silence into her drawings, likening them to the birth of flowers as they bud, bloom and fade, with each stage a different phase of emotional struggle.
Her work carries the message that while nothing stays the same, calmness and tranquillity of mind can help carry one through hardship.
Bringing new angles and contributions to a new home
Visual artist and children’s book illustrator Sandy Leong presented contrasting works Love in a Fallen City, a commissioned project exploring the emotional bond between Hong Kong and its people, and Grandma’s Milk Tea, her latest picture book about coping with separation from loved ones.
Sandy first came to London as a student, learning to tell stories through images and to use illustration to communicate across languages and cultures.
Returning years later, she feels a responsibility to “repay” the country which once trained her.
She combines those skills with her own struggles as a migrant, now paying closer attention to social issues and the wider circumstances of her adopted home.
Through her work, she hopes to contribute not only to the Hong Kong community in Britain, but also to the society she is now part of.
Art as connection and conversation
Koong believes exhibitions have become occasions not only to share creativity but also to gather, chat and exchange fragments of daily life.
He said: “Art-making is inevitably a lonely process, but the exchanges and support we receive through exhibitions are vital nourishment, the fuel that keeps us creating.”
For Rick, showing his works in the UK was a way of reaching out to the Hong Kong community, like calling people together through a shared visual language.
What surprised him most was the number of British visitors who engaged with the exhibition, many showing deep knowledge of Hong Kong.
It reinforced his belief that art can connect across borders, carrying messages to audiences far beyond those who share his background.
At last, proud to be called an artist
All six artists explained they could finally uphold their identity as artists in Britain, which is a feeling they had never experienced in Hong Kong.
Lotte noted that in Hong Kong, some employers did not understand the art industry, often asking her to take on the work of both illustrator and graphic designer while being paid for only one role.
Sandy and Rick added it was difficult to call oneself an artist back home, where people often cared only about income or whether the job was “proper”.
In contrast, they said UK audiences are more interested in what kind of work is created and sometimes express genuine admiration.
That makes them increasingly comfortable claiming the title of artist.
Koong admitted it once felt awkward to self-claim as an artist in Hong Kong.
He added: “But here, we can finally uphold this identity, and keep exploring new possibilities in a larger world.”
Feature image: @sandyleongillustration on Instagram
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