The completion of South Island Line and establishment of Invigorating Island South Office (IISO) in 2020 have initiated an opportunity for regeneration in Southern District. MTR has become a vital channel to connect the bustling city centre and tranquil rural area in the Island South. The concept of “Portal” would be appropriate to describe the narrative when we travel on MTR from the city and entering to South District. ArchiPie had won the Dress Up HK Competition with 2 for IISO with two locations in Wong Chuk Hang: 2 pillars outside Tai Wong Ye Temple and Retaining Wall mural at Yip Hing Street respectively in 2022.

Pillars at Tai Wong Ye Temple
The new Southern Line is an elevated railway viaduct which is stretching above the Tai Wong Ye Temple at Wong Chuk Hang Station. This massive railway viaduct is inevitably dwarfing the visual significance of the temple. The pillars at the entrance of the temple could enhance the presence of the temple by making them as the portal of the temple and the “gateway” of both the Tai Wong Ye temple and Wong Chuk Hang.

The design of the mural is associated with the portal and pillars of Chinese imperial and temple buildings which are usually decorated with auspicious beast (瑞獸) - “dragons” carvings. In Chinese culture, dragon is associated with royalty and good fortune since Tai Wong Ye Temple is the shrine of a imperial figure named “Li Man-chong” (李文忠), a nephew of the Hongwu Emperor Chu Yuan-chang (朱元璋) in Ming Dynasty.

Column cravings are commonly found in important buildings across various cultures in the world, the contents are usually good wishes and records of important historical events. That would be appropriate to illustrate the mural with the upcoming plans of IISO which to be implemented. There are 14 subdivided graphics to be drawn, they are referred to the IISO Conceptual Master Plan 1.0. We believe it would be an informative and beautiful medium to promote the works and objectives of IISO at this prominent location.

Mural at Yip Hing Street:
The mural complements the “Green Link in Wong Chuk Hang”. Hikers will be able to walk up to the top of the retaining wall and pass the mural from above. The concave formation of the retaining wall can be interpreted as a “portal”, like the Meridian Gate in Forbidden City. That mirrors the “portal” theme of the Green Link leading from the urban/industrial setting to the Aberdeen Nature Trail in countryside. The gas kiosk is dressed up as MTR carriage passing through between the city and countryside.

The use of Augmented Reality (AR)
The proposed designs will also incorporate with simple animations and selfie filters in Augmented Reality (AR) which would be an interactive highlight to the graphic

Client: Invigorating Island South Office (IISO)
Role: Design and Build
Status: Completion