Envisioning Beyond Legacy: A Journey Through Hong Kong's Progress

Oval Design Ltd. Crafts an Interactive, Inclusive Exhibition Celebrating 25 Years of Hong Kong's Development

The exhibition was inspired by the desire to ignite elation in visitors and impress upon them how Hong Kong has planned to go from strength to strength after marking its 25th anniversary. It is a journey for people of different generations to collectively witness the progression of Hong Kong. Instead of a conventional exhibition where visitors passively look at descriptions, the team at Oval Design Ltd. maximised the interaction between exhibits and visitors for a deeper engagement.

Envisioning Beyond Legacy is unique in its use of interactive installations and games to drive self-exploration of information by the public on their own initiative. When visitors walk around on a giant Hong Kong map on an LED floor with motion tracking sensors, a compass guides them to the nearest spot and triggers a popup info box on the LED wall, providing a clearer geographic blueprint to comprehend the linkage and synergy of all projects. Another co-creating game backed up by big data analytics was set up for real-time showing visitors their town planning options that served as a public consultation exercise.

The exhibition is divided into three separate spaces of varying sizes. The design team, led by Creative Director Dennis Wong and Design Director Dominic Kam, adopted a proactive design approach to stimulate visitors to explore and participate during their visitation. The exhibition started on 6 July 2022 in City Gallery in Hong Kong and ended on 30 November 2022.

Designing an exhibition that tells the story of a city's development spanning almost 50 years in such a small area presented a significant challenge. Furthermore, the major planning and infrastructure initiatives in Hong Kong involved plenty of information across various departments, requiring massive communication efforts. The team made an effort to source amenities and materials such as audio guides, braille, and stair lifts for any disabilities and optimise the visiting experience for everyone.

The exhibition also stands out for its commitment to sustainability. Almost all core components were digitalised for the ease of content update and reduction of waste. Recyclable PalmEco boards were widely used in fabrication, and equipment like LED monitors, digital panels, and electronic devices were all rent-based and worked out to be reused. The digital game Building the Islands of the Future also serves as an educational tool to deliver values of building a sustainable community for the future.

In conclusion, Envisioning Beyond Legacy is a testament to the innovative spirit of Oval Design Ltd., successfully combining art, technology, and design to create an engaging and inclusive experience that celebrates the past, present, and future of Hong Kong. It is a shining example of how design can be used to tell a story, engage an audience, and inspire a vision for the future.