The Root of Squids
Kelvin Ho, Jenny Tse
We gather because we share something in common. Time flies. Majority of villagers in Kau Sai have moved to urban areas. As a result, we lack common reasons for gathering in Kau Sai and become estranged. A young villager from Kau Sai and a social designer hope to tell a Kau Sai story using the village’s common language and art, to create more “things in common” and opportunities for gathering.
Our idea is inspired by the common memories of Kau Sai. Villagers have a folk wisdom to capture bigfin reef squids. They put a dead pandanus tree into the ocean, and squids treat it as a nest and gather around. This tradition creates a gathering spot for villagers to fish and share. The role of our artwork is like putting the pandanus tree. We want to gather and co-create the piece with villagers. The artwork is also an art space for the public to gather, and it includes an immersive experience that allows people to feel the story with multiple sensations and creates new common memories.
So, we gather again under the Root of Squids.
Kelvin Ho, Jenny Tse
Kelvin Ho, a Kau Sai villager and a communication designer. He hopes to create an art piece as a medium for communication between Kau Sai and the public.
His artwork, “A Broken Boat,” was awarded the Wharf Hong Kong Secondary School Art Competition 2012-13. As it illustrates the changes in Kau Sai, he wants to continue exploring the relationship between art and Kau Sai culture.
He graduated from the School of Design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Communication Design) and received the Kan Tai Keung Design Award (Merit) in 2018. He has now founded Kelvin Ho Design, focusing on multimedia and branding design. Additionally, he received the 2020 Red Dot Design (Brands & Communication) for the work “618 Shanghai Street” as member of the team of Noiseless Design. He wants to use his design and artwork for cultural preservation.
Jenny Tse, a product, interactive installation/exhibition and social designer. She loves to explore the interaction between people, things, the environment, and society through innovative thinking.
She has work experience in the PMQ Seed team to organise children’s design thinking education projects, approaching life issues from an empathetic standpoint. During the period as a designer at Milk Design, she was involved in various art installations, exhibition planning, and community engagement projects, including #ddHK [Nature Therapy], Design Spectrum Exhibition [In Harmony, Delightful Design, Play Lives], and the establishment of Signage Lab HK.
She graduated from the School of Design at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, majoring in Product Design. Currently, she works as a freelance professional and collaborates with different artists and design units to plan community research, creative education, and public engagement projects.
