专业会员

香城琥魄

香港店貓文化富歷史意義，而且遠近馳名，但適逢近年地區重建/活化步伐加快，很多老舊社區與 其文化已被漸漸消失，取而代之便只有一幢幢玻璃幕商廈、高級商店及豪宅。早前來自荷蘭的攝 影師Marcel Heijnen 慕名前來拍攝了一輯香港店貓系列，因而啟發小仙玉決意走訪舊區其中12間 尚存有養貓的老店，希望以紙筆顏色把這種本土獨有風貌一一紀錄下來。 有朋友問小仙玉為什麼會畫老店與貓，因為小仙玉本身很愛貓，喜歡有溫度的舊東西、喜歡逛舊 社區和老店。某天，她隨意走進一間老舊藥行買東西，店內養了一對親人好玩的貓咪，加上老店 主的單純熱情，這種以店貓連結社區的人情味令其觸動良久，因此萌生了畫店貓的念頭。

「香城琥魄」的命名因來: 小仙玉以琥魄(琥珀)比喻瑰麗的貓眼，也代表珍貴，店貓文化確是城中瑰寶，貓咪更是人們心 中的寶貝。而以「魄」一字更能代表那份香港精神與情懷。店、貓與社區就如「琥+魄」二字， 以一種微妙關係彼此交疊。

The Soul of Amber 「香城琥魄」

Hong Kong's “Cat in the Shop” culture is rich in historical significance and well-known. But because of accelerated pace of reconstruction/revitalization in recent years, many old communities and their local culture have gradually disappeared. Instead, they are replaced by commercial buildings with glass walls, high-end shops and luxury houses. Many years ago, Marcel Heijnen, a photographer from the Netherlands, came to film a series about cats living in shops in Hong Kong. This gave inspiration to LittleJade 小仙玉 to visit 12 old shops with cats in the older districts, hoping to record this significant local culture using pen and paper with marvellous colour.

A friend asked LittleJade why she wants to paint old shops and cats. The reason is that LittleJade just loves cats very much. She just loves old things blessed with warm feelings, and loves visiting old communities and especially old shops.

Once upon a time, she walked into an old medicine store to buy things. The store has a pair of fun seeking cats, couple with a very enthusiastic old shopkeeper. This kind of cat-linked community has made people very touching for a long time and so the idea of ​​painting cat in the shop appears naturally in her mind and remains still today.

The story behind the naming of “The Soul of Amber” 「香城琥魄」:

LittleJade associates the precious cat's eye with amber (琥魄- 琥珀), which also represents preciousness. The cat in the shop culture is indeed a treasure in the city of Hong Kong, and cat

is the treasure of people. The word "魄" is more representative of the spirit and sentiment of Hong Kong. Shops, cats and communities are just like the word 「琥+魄」 , interweaving each other in a very subtle and precious relationship.