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C.M. Kwan | all galleries >> My Homeland - Hong Kong >> The Concrete Jungle > Azalea House in Morning Light
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03-AUG-2008

Azalea House in Morning Light

Hong Kong view map

So Uk Estate, one of the Hong Kong oldest public housing estates, was built in 1960.
It has 16 blocks and was the home of 5,316 families.

Although the structures of those buildings are still good,
the high maintenance cost made the Hong Kong Government
decide to demolish the whole estate in 2008 and 2011 in two phases.

Same as other public housing estates in Hong Kong,
So Uk Estate is a very high-density residential area.
Foreign tourists visiting the apartment complexes referred to them as "prisons".
However, it has a lot of green areas
and even the the blocks are named after varieties of flowers.

Posted on 3 August 2008
Best viewed at "original" size

Nikon D3 ,Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED
1/200s f/9.0 at 42.0mm iso200 full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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2004 04-Aug-2008 11:01
That's good topic to share. I think it is difficult for us to find old fashion building in HK in future as HK government tends to demolish the old building rather retain them. That's why HK also give people an image of "Modern City".
XiaoBernard9904-Aug-2008 08:14
always a sonice comment ,after the picture is more living...The graphism with your composition is nice also
TuTmin04-Aug-2008 06:45
nicely shown. ~V~
Simon Chandler04-Aug-2008 03:13
Beautiful work with great lighting and composition. Thanks for the excellent info. v
Chad Ramsey04-Aug-2008 03:06
Lovely view and composition~V
Liz Bickel04-Aug-2008 01:13
Beautiful lighting and composition. The image tells a story.
Guest 03-Aug-2008 20:20
Excellent play of shade and form, V
Fong Lam03-Aug-2008 17:16
Beautiful lighting and nice framing with the trees in the foreground.
Most countries have public housing similiar to these....V
hugo poon03-Aug-2008 15:34
CM, my wife and I must offer our heartfelt thanks to you for this... she has had her happy childhood in So Uk and we have been hoping to pay a visit after we learnt of the demolition plan... We sincerely look forward to seeing more. Best regards, Hugo
Marcia Colelli03-Aug-2008 14:55
Nice photojournalism, thank you for the inforamtion and nice composition V
Walter Otto Koenig03-Aug-2008 13:50
Very interesting and informative documentation. I like the way you used the trees, lights and shadows to moderate a fairly harsh looking place. "V"
an nguyen03-Aug-2008 13:12
I am so glad to photograph them. It tells the story of daily life of a vibrant city.
Char03-Aug-2008 13:08
Hi CM,
An excellent shot and capture of the lighting. A wonderful scene. They look pretty new. \/
Guest 03-Aug-2008 12:37
Superb composition and lines, CM! I really like the positioning of the trees in the oppositite corners of the image... Well done!