Foreseen Property Agency

Project Description

Foreseen Property Agency is a cultural digital archive project, combining an online digital archive of the traditional old shops in Hong Kong and a physical performative exhibition with community participation. The project aims to explore new ways of representing traditional stories and their stories in the form of a 3D-Image Archive and an exhibition. The project combines 3D scan, 3D prints and spatial narrative to present the public with a new representation of Hong Kong's traditional stores and their historical stories. I have created an online archive showcasing five traditional small businesses, which is accessible to the public at any time through the website www.fore-seen.com and a physical exhibition at the Fringe Club in Central and extended invitations to individuals from diverse backgrounds to attend the event. I also organised four school tours, and one special guest curator welcoming approximately 80 university art students to visit the exhibition. The project effectively promoted local shops in Hong Kong. In addition to featuring selected traditional businesses in the art space, I also displayed their images and dialogues within the exhibition to ensure their active presence. Furthermore, as part of the RTHK "The Works" interview, I had the shop owners from Chu Wing Kee and Sai Kee Seafood participate, allowing them to share their thoughts on the project and provide updates on their current situations. I accomplished this by inviting the shop owners to document their own shops. I utilized 3D scanning techniques and acted as facilitators, introducing the method to the shop owners. I guided them in understanding their daily routines within the shop and instructed them in performing the 3D scanning based on their usual pathways. The archival data of the shop was transformed into a 3D model, providing a representation of the place from the shop owner's perspective.

Uniqueness and Impact

I have implemented various methods to preserve traditional small shops. To capture the spatial essence of these establishments, I employed a 3D camera to generate point-cloud data. Furthermore, I conducted textual and video interviews to document the unique narratives and experiences of these businesses. In addition, I have invited five writers, to revisit the interview videos and craft five pieces of writing in response to the stories of these shops. Following the exhibition, I delivered conference presentation at:

The Kyoto Conference on Arts, Media & Culture (KAMC2023) focusing on digital humanities. The topic of the presentation is "The Ethics of Authenticity and Authorship in 3D Scan Archiving for Heritage Preservation in Hong
Presentation, The International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA) 2024
Exhibition, The International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS) 2024
Conference Presentation, DRAWinU Conference Porto 2024: Drawing Across x Along x Between University Borders, Organised by I2ADS - Institute for Research in Art, Design and Society (I2ADS), University of Porto Faculty of Fine Arts (FBAUP)

During my research and following a literature review, I found it pertinent to delve deeper into the political implications of 3D point cloud technology within the context of economic transactions. With digital technologies making cultural heritage more accessible, preservable, and re-creatable, I realized that the act of reimagining one's environment can also carry political significance. By reconceptualizing social public spaces as amalgamations of actual, virtual, factual, and fictional elements. Through this awareness, I hope to inspire individuals to challenge and reshape these established norms and narratives. This project serves as a form of activism, inviting shop owners to envision space through their own perspectives.

Digital heritage has transcended the mere act of documentation or preservation; digitization has gone beyond liberating objects from their natural art and heritage contexts. It has evolved into a creative process that entails the generation and incorporation of materials in interactive and site-specific ways.

Interdisciplinary Appeal

Foreseen Property Agency is an innovative cultural digital archive project that intertwines the digital and physical realms, offering a unique interdisciplinary appeal. The project combines an online digital archive of traditional old shops in Hong Kong with a physical performative exhibition that encourages community participation. It seeks to explore new methods of representing traditional stories through a 3D-Image Archive and an engaging exhibition. The project employs advanced 3D scanning and 3D printing technologies to create detailed spatial narratives of traditional Hong Kong stores. This integration of digital technology with heritage preservation provides a new representation of these historical stories, making them accessible to a broader audience through the. In addition to this digital aspect, a physical exhibition at the Fringe Club in Central showcases these digital archives, inviting individuals from diverse backgrounds to participate. The research delves into the political implications of 3D point cloud technology within economic transactions, highlighting how digital technologies make cultural heritage more accessible and re-creatable. The project reconceptualizes social public spaces as amalgamations of actual, virtual, factual, and fictional elements, inspiring individuals to challenge and reshape established norms and narratives.

In summary, Foreseen Property Agency is a multifaceted project that bridges digital technology, art, storytelling, community engagement, and academic research. It not only preserves the cultural heritage of Hong Kong's traditional shops but also reimagines their stories in innovative and impactful ways.

Exhibition Photo: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14uQ4m4Y7XCOUnjoP-JdQvFsa-QM0DZvb?usp=share_link
Project in Progress: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1abd_QABa_GKHgQDeU1WxrUSfOiy6cm7K?usp=share_link
Documentation Video of the Exhibition: https://vimeo.com/889786583

Project Investigator

Professor WONG Wing Shan (Academy of Visual Arts)

Project Collaborator

Professor Kachi CHAN (Academy of Visual Arts)

Funding/Award

Hong Kong Art Development - Project Grant
Design Trust HK - Seed Grant

Publications

DRAWinU Conference Porto 2024: Drawing Across x Along x Between University Borders, Organised by I2ADS - Institute for Research in Art, Design and Society (I2ADS), University of Porto Faculty of Fine Arts (FBAUP) - Topic: Evolving Traditions: Integrating 3D Scanning and Watercolor Illustration in Documenting Heritage
Pictorial Presentation, 29th ISEA International Symposium on Electronic Art - Topic: Preserving the Past for the Future: 3D Scanning and Community Involvement in Hong Kong's Heritage Conservation
Foreseen (Oversea) Property Agency, Academic Exhibition, 13th International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS 13), Surabaya, Indonesia

Media Coverage

Radio Commercial 903, 急急 Touch
Foreseen Property Agency, RTHK's The Works
【藝/偽地產代理老店保育】星期日生活 Sunday Mingpao
【EXHIBITION】新科技保育本地老店雙人展創建「偽地產中介」預演未來消費體驗美紙在老店消失之前。Being Hong Kong
3D+AI 還原老店面貌冀喚起大眾關注保育 [Ta Kung Pao]
「寓延地產代理」跨媒體藝術展覽｜結合科技與社區藝術｜3D 點雲技術記錄空間細節｜為本地老店保育注入科技元素 [Art-Tech Talks]
ways of seeing：3D 虛擬記錄反思保育偽地產代理老店點賣？ [Ming Pao]
浸大藝術家三維掃描老鋪喚公眾反思 [Headline Daily]
藝術家三維立體掃描老店數碼化油麻地「美都餐室」 [on.cc]
3D 配合 AI 製模型浸大藝術家保育老店 [Oriental Daily]
Old shops find new life in 3D scans and AI [The Standard]
浸大藉數碼科技重塑老店面貌 [Hong Kong Economic Times] (Subscription is required)
3D 配合 AI 製模型浸大藝術家保育老店 [Yahoo News]