HKDI Gallery

Born in 1958 and graduated from Hong Kong Polytechnic, Freeman is now the founder of KL&K Creative Strategics, the vice chairman of the Design Alliance Asia and the secretary general of Hong Kong Federation of Design and Creative Industries. Throughout the years, he has been dedicating himself to drive the development of Hong Kong’s creative sector. Having been working as a designer and artist for over 30 years, Freeman has achieved over 300 awards. Apart from graphic design, Freeman also created a wide spectrum of 3D works, including installation, sculpture, furniture, so on and so forth. They are highly reputed and collected by museums and collectors all around the world. His Chairplay series consists of an extended range of works is one of his signature collections. In 2015, Hong Kong Heritage Museum organized the exhibition “Freeman Lau & Design: Independent Decisions” and showed over 200 pieces of Freeman’s works. In 2021, Freeman was awarded as the DFA World’s Outstanding Chinese Designer.

Born in Hong Kong and educated in the UK, furniture designer Samuel Chan is known for works of uncompromising visual purity and subtle detailing. Throughout his career Chan has used wood as a primary material: his precisely-executed pieces express the maker's craft and the qualities of wood in contemporary, imaginative ways. When he was named British Furniture Designer of the Year in 2015, his peers praised Chan's ability to "make wood sing", and his designs have received numerous international awards. Based in his studio in London, his work ranges from private commissions to commercial projects, including an extensive collection of furniture designs for the Jumeirah Himalayas Hotel Shanghai. Promoting longevity and legacy in design is a priority for Chan, and in recent years he has applied this to initiatives that educate and mentor young, emerging designers both in the UK and in Hong Kong.

Tse Shing Luen was born in Hong Kong in 1959. After 3 years of secondary education, Tse started working as an apprentice for wood engraving. 2 years later, Tse realized he lacked the talent. With the influence of his family, he turned to the field of Chinese furniture production. He started again as an apprentice and was promoted to technician and then craftsman. Years later, he set up his own wooden furniture production company, where he trained and managed his team of workers.

For the past decades, Tse has been passionate about the production of Chinese furniture. His furniture is much appreciated by the users. It is not only sold in Mainland China, but also exported all over the world. In 2015, the collaboration between Tse and Freeman Lau, the renowned Hong Kong designer, took place. Tse produced various sets of chairs, including the Ming Intertwined and the endowed chairs for the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, designed by Freeman. Those works have been exhibited around the world and collected by museums and collectors.

Born in Hong Kong in 1985, Roy set up his studio in Fotan after his graduation from the Department of Fine Arts of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He then started to work on the creation of woodwork as well as mechanical installations. From time to time, he has also been assisting artists in the production of their three-dimensional works.

In recent years, Roy has been focusing on recycling local wood and turning the material into outdoor public furniture. He is involved in all stages of production, from raw material processing to the design and production of the furniture. He puts the concept of local production in Hong Kong into practice and his works can be found in different public spaces.

Michael co-founded his studio in the Netherlands in 2010 and is now based in Hong Kong. The collaboration started after he completed the IM masters course at Design Academy Eindhoven. Michael’s works explore different aspects of design from crafts and industry to design systems and sustainability. He is designing and exploring design in different levels and disciplines, from 2D to objects to spatial. His works have been shown during Milan and Dutch Design Week, Vitra Design Museum, and other international design exhibitions and museums. Michael is the awardee of the Hong Kong Young Design Talent Award and Perspective’s 40 under 40 Award. With his collaborations with Vitra Design Museum (DE) and V&A (UK), including curatorial works and exhibition design, Michael’s creativity is reflected in the form of exhibitions as well.

Tin Ho Lau is an artist and pan-disciplinary designer. He was a student at Design Academy Eindhoven. Now living in Hong Kong, he has worked on commercial and public projects as a graphic, product, interior and exhibition designer. “Tin 1”, a ball point pen he designed for Shenzhen Comix Group, was given Best Stationary of China Gold Award by Paperworld China, Messe Frankurt. Tin also works as a consultant, providing insight, bridging parties and forming projects across commercial, art and design.

Furniture in the style of the Ming Dynasty is famous for its elegance and smoothness. The furniture is mostly made of fine materials and with exquisite techniques. It is always gorgeous like those scholars in the past who held magnificent spirits by being magnanimous and knowledgeable. This coincidently echoes with the vibes and virtue of the Hong Kong Palace Museum. The legs of the chairs intertwined with each other embodying the close partnership between the Palace Museum in Beijing and Hong Kong Palace Museum as well as that between China and Hong Kong.

Especially for this project, a veteran hardwood furniture craftsman was invited to help bring back the craft of traditional furniture to Hong Kong and transfer the techniques to the local woodware craftsman of the young generation by working together. This is just along the line of how the Palace Museum in Beijing conveys the spirit and brings the collections to the Hong Kong Palace Museum. Both interactions are derived from the concept of inheritance.

This design is based on a geometric structure that creates a sense of order. Visual simplicity and harmony are achieved through the repetition of a complex wood joint (mortise and tenon), which requires the technical expertise of a master craftsman. The use of this joint detail acknowledges tradition and continuity but is expressed here in a contemporary context. From a pragmatic point of view, the concept is an efficient response to the wood material available - small sections of hardwood ideal for realising this design.