Chung King Mansion
重慶大廈
1961, Commercial 商業建築
36-44 Nathan Road
九龍尖沙咀彌敦道36-44號
Situated in the heart of bustling Tsim Sha Tsui, Chungking Mansion is surly one of its kind – Well illustrated by the name of the movie “Chungking Express” (“Chungking Forest” in Chinese), Chungking Mansion is like a forest that never stops growing and evolving. With chaos, darkness, mysteries and dangers lurking in the shadow, the forest is still a riveting presence brimming with energy and strong will to survive.
Chungking Mansion is packed with low-budget guesthouses, shops, restaurants and money exchangers. It accommodates people across the globe, most of them backpackers and ethnic minorities in Hong Kong. Showcasing Hong Kong's vibrant cultural diversity, Chungking Mansion was selected as the example of the statement “Asia is the place that best demonstrates globalisation” by an American magazine in 2007.
The mansion was constructed in 1961 with five residential blocks and a three-storey shopping arcade. It has no stunning architectural design, no central air-conditioning system in the shopping arcade and not even a transformer room to provide sufficient electricity. Like a forest, the hallways of the shopping arcade are chaotically disorganized. It was even once a hotbed of crime where criminals gathered.
‘What makes it attractive?’ one might ask. Chungking Mansion’s imperfection and acceptance of variety gives rise to its evolution and self-advancement, projecting a ray of hope out of darkness and reflecting the core value of Hong Kong people.
坐落在繁華的尖沙咀中的重慶大廈，它就如電影「重慶森林」此名，如森林般的不斷在生長，不斷在改變。它有著森林的混亂，幽暗，神秘和危險，卻同時有著強烈的生命力和求生意欲。
重慶大廈包含著廉價賓館、商店、食肆、兌換店……等。它的住客是來自世界各地，不少是背包客和香港的少數族裔。在2007年美國雜誌中，它被選為「亞洲最能體現全球一體化」的例子，反映是香港多元文化的特色。
這個1961年建成的住宅樓宇，有5座住宅樓，3層的商場的吸引力是甚麼呢？它沒有精彩的建築設計，商場也沒有中央冷氣提供，沒有牛房給予足夠的電力供應，商場通道有如森林般的混亂。它曾是三教九流的聚合點，是罪惡的溫床。
或許它的吸引力是來自它的不完美，它對不完美的接受，而不斷的自我更生，就是在幽暗的底層，仍有見到光明的希望。這個不就是香港的精神嗎？
文：陳翠兒 (香港註冊建築師)
攝影：香港建築中心
http://www.etnet.com.hk/www/tc/diva/art_hkac_detail.php?id=29097&page=1
