Hong Kong's neon signs are an important symbol of the city's culture, and since the 1920s, neon signs have become an integral part of the cityscape. These colourful and creative lights attract the attention of customers and become a major feature of Hong Kong's bustling scene at night. Capture.HK will introduce the history, characteristics, and production process of neon signs in Hong Kong, as well as the challenges faced by neon signs in Hong Kong now. In addition, the exhibitions of Hong Kong conservation groups "Neon Encounter" and "Neon Continuation" were introduced, showcasing the historical value of neon lights in Hong Kong. The precious memory of Hong Kong's neon lights deserves our protection.

The history of neon lights in Hong Kong
Neon lights have become a part of Hong Kong's cityscape for nearly a century, adding a unique charm to the city. Since the 1920s, many businessmen in the city have installed various neon signs on the upper floors of the tenement buildings, attracting customers with creative and colorful lights. After World War II, neon signs became even more popular in Hong Kong. At that time, many factories and workshops competed to produce glass lamps with beautiful design and exquisite craftsmanship, which made Hong Kong a bustling night scene.

Hong Kong was once regarded as a symbol of neon lights. In 1973, major cities around the world, including Hong Kong, implemented strict electricity rationing. However, when the oil crisis gradually turned into a financial crisis, Hong Kong lit up the city's neon signs, and while offices, shops, restaurants and homes were turned down to the most basic lighting, Hong Kong's neon signs were specially exempted between 6 and 10 p.m. every night to maintain the confidence and vitality of Hong Kong's economy.

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Features of neon signs
The neon sign is characterized not only by its lighting effect, but also by its unique font and shape design, which together make up the neon sign characteristics.

Neon sign font
The font of a neon sign is a very important aspect of signboard design. Many bosses will pay a high price to ask the master to design their own unique font for the store to highlight the brand image. There are different font options, such as the use of calligraphy scripts such as regular script, Wei tablet script, official script, Kanting Liu, Xingshu, cursive script, etc., to design neon signs to highlight the unique style and image of the store.

Neon sign appearance
The original name of the signboard in ancient times was a disguise, used to attract customers, the original pattern of the simple disguise, the shop operators began to be ingenious in the design of the disguise, the banner was designed to be consistent with the shape of the goods sold by the store, it was a cow glowing blue and white, this signboard once became the landmark of the community. Appearance is also a very important element, and a unique shape can often attract the attention of tourists. For example, the neon sign of Neon Semmy Western Restaurant in Hong Kong's Western District.

Neon sign colors

Filled in the lamp, the gas can emit different colors of light, such as helium (red-orange), neon (orange-red), argon (purple), krypton (white), xenon (blue). However, in order to produce different colors of neon signs, it needs to be supplemented by green, yellow, blue and white phosphors.

Neon sign making process
Making a neon sign requires a highly skilled team to follow step by step, and each step is handled by professional craftsmen who have their own expertise. Making a neon sign is a five-part process, including scaffolding, building a light box to place a fire cow, diopters, connecting wires and assembling it, and finally painting to make the whole neon sign more durable. The following will introduce the two masters.

Hong Kong neon light maker: Hu Zhikai
As a teenager, Chef Hu began working in the neon making industry, taking care of bending tubes, learning the skills of some of the top craftsmen of the previous generation, and has since become a staple of this generation of sunset craftsmen. Chef Wu continues to explore how to break through the practical and technical limitations of neon signs, having created a 3D work "Neon Man Head" more than 20 years ago, and this time he has participated in leading the restoration team of Neon Symphony to prepare for the old neon signs in Hong Kong on display at "Neon Continuation".

Hong Kong signboard installation master: Chu Hongliang
You can see reports of the bending master on the Internet, but it is rare to see the report of the signboard installation master. The agility of the signboard installer is impressive, but the installation of neon signboards requires working at height, which is very dangerous. At present, there is no neon sign installation project, and Master Chu is now doing the signature rescue operation and becoming one of the partners of "Neon Exchange".

Hong Kong Neon Story
The decline of neon in Hong Kong
With the development of technology and the change of market demand, neon lights are gradually replaced by new technologies such as LEDs, and the market demand is gradually declining. In addition, neon tube manufacturers can no longer offer such a wide range of colors, which also limits the application of neon signs. In Hong Kong, for example, there are less than 29 colours to choose from, while neon has grown to 100 shades at its peak. And with dwindling demand, manufacturers need to consider their economic viability in the market, which has the potential to affect the future of these neon signs.

Hong Kong's Neon Signature Conservation Group: Neon Symphony

Image source: Neon Junction

Neon Intersection is a neon sign conservation group in Hong Kong, founded in 2020. Previously, there were many large-scale neon signs in Hong Kong, but in 2009 4,000 had been removed. Neon Intersection was founded in the hope of preserving these precious cultural assets and allowing them to continue.