Kowloon Walled City was a former location in Kowloon that was an extremely densely populated place, being the most densely populated area in human history with its some 50,000 residents in its 0.026km2 of land. It is a fascinating example of human adaptability and capability to persevere and innovate in the hardest circumstances.
The above video provides a more in depth look at the former structure
Examples in Media and Exhibits
Previous Exhibits
The Walled City is a fascinating and well received piece of cultural heritage. As such, there have been various temporary exhibits which feature recreations, sets and images that capture the atmosphere and environment of the Walled City.
Other types of records include physical media such as texts and books. One such popular example is the book “City Of Darkness Life In Kowloon Walled City ( 1993)” by by Greg Girard and Ian Lambot, which contains various anecdotes and pictures of the city.
Relevance in Media
Beyond these types of exhibits and records, the Walled City also has a deep and rich history and influence within pop-culture, being a prominent source of inspiration for settings in all types of entertainment, from TV shows to video games.
Proposed Exhibit
This project aims to preserve the Kowloon Walled City and bring it into the digital realm. Using historical records and data to recreate a digital reconstruction that is explorable, aiming to tell the narratives of the life within the city.
Using the game of Minecraft, a basic prototype structure can be used to develop some architectural structures of the Walled City, as seen from the example below.
Additionally, AI tools can also be a helpful tool in assisting with the project, using their image generation tools to help assist in deciphering the intended visualizations and creations of the city and development.
Utilizing these tools, this exhibit first should create a prototype depicting the entire mega-structure, utilizing this design as a baseline imaging and reimagining of what it would be like.
United Nations Sustainable Development GOALS (SDGs)
This exhibit also aims to address some of the sustainable development goals in relation to the Walled City:
- If this project will provide a new method for learning. Firstly through educating the population on the history of Hong Kong, particularly for this area and period and the unique cultural heritage that can be obtained from an infamous mega-structure. Furthermore, the quality of education can also be helpful in other fields, particularly architecture and urban planning. This is because, as the most densely populated area in human history, the Walled City is an interesting case study, particularly in the fields of urban planning and architecture.
Goal 4: Quality Education
- As the Kowloon Walled City was a prime example of human ingenuity and innovation in a restricting and harsh circumstance and constraint. As such, by providing improved methods to observe and immerse one into it allows for a reflection and retrospection on the practices used building the structure, to utilize them and better improve our cities and communities.