‘Hong Kong in the 1960s’ photo exhibition: young expat’s images of street scenes, ‘ordinary stuff’ capture glimpses of era gone by
- Art director Redge Solley came to city in September 1969 after applying for a job on a whim. He left but returned again in 1974 and remained for two decades working for government
- Exhibition at EastPro Gallery in Causeway Bay gallery presents pictures not shown in public before
Two hours after Redge Solley arrived in Hong Kong in September 1969, he sipped his first San Miguel beer at the Cricket Club and stared in wonder at the misty mountains in the distance.
It was a far cry from London, where the 20-something worked as an art director for American advertising agency J. Walter Thompson before applying on a whim for a job in Hong Kong, despite not knowing a thing about the British colony.
His early impressions of the city are captured in a new exhibition of photographs, graphic illustrations and drawings, called “Hong Kong in the 1960s” at EastPro Gallery in Causeway Bay.
Hong Kong in 1969 was rapidly changing, with its population swelling to close to 4 million. Struck first by the heat and crowds, Solley says what drew him most were its people.
He recalls being welcomed by local colleagues at Grants Advertising where he worked, and how they often invited him to yum cha, which is Cantonese for “drink tea”, but meant lunch in a group of 12 at a teahouse on Gloucester Road.
