Much of Hong Kong has changed since the Fifties, especially when modernisation made its way to every nook and cranny of Kowloon. Still, much have also remained, especially when we find our way to the Yau Tsim Mong District, where the old and new sit side by side. Thus, while the city is shaped by a tradition of urban transformation, specific places of tradition resist transformation.
The crossing of Nullah Road, Sai Yeung Choi Street, and Tung Choi Street bears witness to this paradoxical scenario. Many would still look for the petrol station that ceased operation a few years ago. Some would remember the theatre showcasing classic Cantonese opera since the Seventies or the old cinema that featured films since the Sixties. And few would recall the nullah or watercourse that was still there in the Fifties or so, when the goldfish market first popped up in the area. For hitherto withstanding the test of time, the District Council awarded it in 2011 a monumental trophy—the infamous Goldfish sculpture most locals and tourists are still raving about.
Amidst the noise of the crowd and the colour of aquatic species that converges in this crossing is a peculiar space of silence out in the open. This space is Nullah No la (魚樂無渠), an empty stage, a blank canvas, a free realm of art. It surreptitiously offers us a window of opportunity to access an imaginary place—an intersection of time and space, memory and territory—by way of art, creativity, and intervention. After all, what better way to defamiliarise our blasé experience of the city’s tradition and transformation than to express ourselves freely?
On 14 November 2015, Saturday, we invited the public, both young and old, to help us transform the Nullah Road Sitting-out Area into an alternative art space together with our six featured artists, who worked on different media from traditional drawing and painting, to sculpture, sound, and performance. Our ‘art day out’ was meant to engage the public, locals and tourists alike, in a meaningful and lively discussion to elicit their understanding of the changeable environment and how they are ultimately responsible for it.
We started to make this happen by simply recognising Nullah No la (魚樂無渠).
Guided by four curatorial teams, Nullah No la (魚樂無渠) featured four interventions.
CHANGE (curated by Aaron Wong, Cathy Ho and Crystal Li, with artists Flying Pig ‘Pat Wong’ and Jarvis Luk) experimented the role of artists in engaging the community in a public space, and to rouse the awareness about the change of Tung Choi Street North—Goldfish market—and the nature of its value fading through the decades.
GOLDFISH YAU YAU YAU (curated by Donna Yuen and Sally Hui, with artist Brandon Chan) welcomed locals and tourists into an interactive experience in recalling and discovering the long forgotten history of Nullah Road.
ALRIGHT TO USE (curated by Milky Choi and Hailey Tsang, with artist Swing Lam) invited locals to recreate and enjoy using their public space which is generally considered as a social space open and accessible for people.
INTERSECTION (curated by Kristian Agustin and Vivian Fung, with artists Terry Ng and Wong Chun Hoi) explored the many theoretical concepts of ‘space’ and ‘place’ and how these could help the public discover new ways of understanding why a lack of space does not necessarily mean a lack of opportunities to be creative.
by Kristian Jeff Cortez Agustin
.
.
魚樂無渠: 藝術實驗計劃
香港自50年代起，輕工業發達，經濟起飛；90年代轉型，進入知識型經濟，社會及人口結構出現重大轉變，城市規劃及民生亦隨之產生巨變。作為最早開發、人口最密集的鬧市之一，旺角見證著本港歷代變遷。以旺角西洋菜街及通菜街交界水渠道一帶為例，50至90年代標誌性的東樂戲院、大大公司、加油站，今天已變成港鐵站出口、聯合廣場和水渠道休憩處（金魚公園）。
水渠道，50年代曾經果真有「水渠」出現，今天名字依舊，而景物全非。70年代中期，水渠道至通菜街、旺角道一帶金魚店林立，有「金魚街」之稱，成為本港著名景點；2011年「金魚公園」正式啟用，歡迎公眾人士享用，金魚雕塑「進駐」作為地標。唯近年旺角租金飆升，金魚街賣魚店舖從高峰期逾百間，逐步萎縮至約50間，取而代之的是藥房和餐廳等。水渠早就沒了，金魚街亦可能快將成為歷史。
道道歲月痕跡都是回憶的載體，盛載著不同年代港人的共同或個人憶記。今次藝術計劃以水渠道休憩處為切入點，以這時空交錯而空白的公共空間作為畫布，由藝術家主導，透過藝術介入，追蹤城市歷史時空推展路徑、勾勒出新舊交替的風景、呈現公共空間的權力拉鋸，為公眾提供回憶、想像、實現「生活應當怎麼過？」的線索。
4大藝術介入項目，包括︰
1/ 「遷變」︰藝術家飛天豬 及 陸俊穎，將於金魚街展出畫作及雕塑作品，一方面探索藝術家在公共藝術中所擔當的角色，另一方面引發公眾思考「金魚街」的演變及未來發展。（策展︰碩士生李淑賢、何婉儀、黃達安）
2/ 「金魚悠游遊」︰藝術家陳百堅，將創作一系列「金魚」，藉此與公眾互動，追溯水渠道的發展。歡迎本地市民及旅客一同參與。（策展︰碩士生許沛婷、袁敏曦）
3/ 「你有渠/權用」︰藝術家林兆榮，將透過裝置藝術，發動公眾參與，探討公共空間的使用權，重塑理想公共空間的設計條件及準則，發掘生活與空間的無限可能。（策展︰碩士生蔡盈楓、曾凱鈴）
4/ 「交界」︰藝術家吳漢曦 及 王鎮海，將以「空間和地方」的各種理論概念為框架，透過多媒體、串流和裝置藝術，激發公眾反思：空間的大小是否與創意之多寡成正比？(策展：博士生叶菲、碩士生馮穎君)
歡迎傳媒及公眾參與！
by 曾凱鈴 (Hailey Tsang)
◯ 藝術家
◯ 承認書
◯ 新聞稿
魚樂無渠 Nullah No la 