[WIP, Updated August 2018] I first encountered Hong Kong street art back in 2015 when I visited in March when Hong Kong’s art month was underway. There I got to witness street artists from around the world at work creating their murals for the second edition of HKwalls around the Sheung Wan and Central area. 3 years later I returned and HKwalls has run several editions in various parts of Hong Kong since then, and many of the works that I had seen before have disappeared or been updated, which is why I’m updating this post to show you where to head to find street art in the Sheung Wan and Central area of Hong Kong.
I have a massive number of photos to edit, so I’m not going to update everything all at once unfortunately, come back frequently to see the latest additions.
HKwalls
Most of the large murals you see in Hong Kong are probably due to HKwalls – a street art festival that invites various street artists from local and international circles to take over the walls in Hong Kong’s neighbourhoods with their artwork. Besides Sheung Wan and Central, you can also find their works in Kowloon’s Sham Shui Po and Wong Chuk Hang.
Not all the graffiti you see is from this festival though – there are more raw bits of work I’ve tried my best to identify as well. Use the handy dandy menu here to navigate.
- Tai On Terrace / Po Hing Fong Lane [updated]
- Tank Lane/Square Street [updated]
- Google Map
Looking for things to do in Hong Kong? Here’s a little about shopping and my mixed feelings about Hong Kong, check out my guides to the outlying islands Cheung Chau and Lamma, or see how you can enjoy a local food experience.
Po Hing Fong / Tai On Terrace
There used to be more works here during HKwalls 2015, and while there aren’t so many these days, you can still find some gems here, like a surprising Invader mosaic.
2 Po Hing Fong – spot the Invader! I was really surprised to round the corner and see this
Facing Fuk On Lane – Tai On Terrace was a major site for HKwalls 2015, but sadly not many of those works are left. The wall by DEMS or J Demsky from Spain has been whitewashed save for the design on the door
Here’s a pic of the artist in action from 2015 – I caught this before he painted the door that you see above – see the finished artwork archived on HKwalls
8 Tai On Terrace – this creative artwork cracked me up when I saw it
I found this on the side of Yoga Bam Bam
Tai On Terrace (On Lok Building) – Hong Kong artist Xeme‘s work from 2015 is still intact if a little faded after 3 years
AFFECT-T, 28 Po Hing Fong Street by Stern Rockwell (USA) for HKwalls 2015 is still there!
Tank Lane / Square Street
Along Kui In Fong Road / Boom: HKwalls2018 work by Indonesian artists Jecks and Bou
I love the colour unity of the two artworks even though you can see the styles are different
Staircase between Tai Ping Shan Street and Bridges Street
Tai Ping Shan Street: colourful HKwalls2018 work by Zlism
Bridges Street: Bitcoin Scrooge McDuck by Haka Graffiti
Rich View Terrace
Facing Tank Lane: Brazilian artist Alex Senna has a drunk or possibly homeless figure with a dog stretched out on the low wall. He left several works in other spots, I’m kinda loving his BnW aesthetic and focus on everyday people.
Facing Square Street: Very insta-friendly geometric walls on the other sides of Rich View Terrace
Square Street
21 Square Street: Quite a pretty portrait by HK illustrator Neil Wang for HKwalls2018
The sign off looks like someone called Holski, and it looks a bit random but in my head I called this the 4 seasons
Tank Lane stairway between Square Street and Hollywood Road
23 Square Street / Cawah Arts Gallery: South Korean XEVA‘s Bruce Lee work has lasted since HKwalls2015. I saw it mid-painting back then so it’s nice to see the full work without scaffolding now
Along Hollywood Road: unknown baos were around in 2015 as well
Along Hollywood Road: This piece by French artist Hopare was one of my favourites from HKwalls2015 and is still pretty even if it is a little faded now
More coming soon
MAP
Anyone have other street art spots in Hong Kong to recommend? Share them in the comments here so I know where to go if I ever head back to Hong Kong!
Looking for more street art? See all my street art guides for various places including Singapore, Asia, Europe and America.
Comments
Jaclynn, I’m so glad I stumbled upon your ws. I’ve seen a lot of the wall art & always wondered who the artists might’ve been. Thanks for putting an end to my curiosity.
I’ve got some pix of more wall art in HK & Spain.
Glad you found this helpful :) I love that street art is always evolving and there’s always new things to see!
Wow! Your collections of Graffiti from different Countries are great! i do love Graffiti and also have my own collections too.
thank you! :)
This is a great article and the map is super helpful! Does anyone know if any or most of the street art is still up? I understand with street art that over time it can get painted and drawn over. I am going to Hong Kong end of this month and would love to do my own self-guided tour.
Thanks Moe glad you find it useful! Since it’s for a festival and they probably had to ask permission for spaces, there’s a good chance the works are still up, but I can’t guarantee it though! You might want to check out HKwalls on Instagram or on the web – I think there are lots of new works in other parts of HK too :)
Hi i was wondering where to get them spraypaints in hk.
sorry that I have no idea, but maybe you wanna try googling or asking street artists based in Hong Kong? cheers!
I love the one by Hopare. Awesome shots!
thank you! I do love the hopare one too, am keeping an eye out for more of his works around the world!
hi, is anyone can tell me where is the colorful, fun houses graffiti in Sheung Wan, which street is that?
Hi Peter, do you have a picture of what you are talking about? Or are you referring to one of the pictures in this post?
I think the “fun houses graffiti” you mean is the depiction of old-style townhouses on the corner of Graham St and Hollywood Rd. That artwork is given some prominence in a recent e-guidebook which you can download from the Hong Kong Tourism Board website: http://www.discoverhongkong.com/au/see-do/highlight-attractions/old-town-central/crazy-for-art.jsp. The e-book, which has a few pages on street art in the old part of town, can be downloaded from the bottom of that page. I’ll be in Hong Kong for two weeks in November and will look out for any interesting new works while I’m there. Thanks Jaclynn, for your guide to HK art. I’ve already made great use of your guide to street art in Singapore.
Thanks Rob good to know! Glad you found the guides useful :)
There should be quite a lot of new works in Hong Kong – HKwalls has been pretty active!
Just back home from a fortnight in Hong Kong. The work by Fin Dac which you photographed has been halved. The woman’s face is still there but the man’s face has been removed for new building work. Also much diminished is the nearby Seoul Bros mural, part of which has wiped out by the construction of a new restaurant next door.
The “fun houses graffiti” has become iconic. It’s on the wall of the G.O.D. (Goods of Desire) store, which sells various souvenirs bearing its image. Hard to get a photo of it without other people’s smartphones and selfie sticks getting in the way. It’s called Yau Ma Ti Graffiti 2012 and is by Alex Croft. There is now a plaque on the wall to explain its inspiration: the houses of the old Kowloon Walled City.
I didn’t spend nearly as much time as I expected exploring HK street art as I’d hoped, but I can recommend the one-hour Accidental Art tours of street art in Sheung Wan on Sundays. Did this tour on my last day in HK. Tours available in English or Mandarin. Even though I was staying in Sheung Wan and had already explored the area, the tour revealed some gems I’d missed, and explained the background of some works I’d already discovered.
wow great info, thanks for the update! I definitely need to get back to Hong Kong and see all the new stuff :)
Great article Jaclynn!