What if Wong Kar Wai’s film sets became real-life environments? Eaton HK, located on the central Nathan Road in Hong Kong, is inspired by the romantic filmmaker, and offers fantastic spaces both conceptually and aesthetically. It is the city’s hottest community-spirit and artistic hub at the moment. A safe space for diverse voices, it is the perfect location when travelling to Hong Kong for business or leisure.

This contemporary and 360-spot is a unique landmark in the busy city of Hong Kong. A five-minute walk from the Jordan tube station, close to the Victoria Harbour and opposite the fascinating Yau Ma Tei Market, Eaton HK is a cultural platform which features exhibition spaces, artist’s residencies, hotel rooms, co-working venues with gorgeous furniture, events spaces (from weddings to concerts), an amazing food hall, a film projection screen room with comfy cushions, a radio booth (notice the FKA Twigs and Radiohead album covers on display?), a funky rooftop pool, hype merchandising, wellness programmes, and much more.

Self-described as “hospitality with a mission”, Eaton HK has edgy design and is rooted in charitable and Humanistic philosophy . This incredible cultural centre celebrates inclusivity with a focus on welcoming LGBTQI+ communities – either as artists or travellers – and with special programmes to help immigrants, through staff hires and activations. LGBTQI+ icons are subtly honoured with various spaces named “Anita, Maggie and Michelle” in reference to the “Chinese Madonna” Anita Mui, and actresses Maggie Cheung, lead actress of In the Mood for Love (by Wong Kar Wai), and the recently awarded Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh. In the lift, a large poster has the lines: “Come as you are; We respect women; We value our home Planet Earth; We stand with the LGBT Community; We stand with Immigrants and Refugees and People of All Faiths and Origins.”.

A community corner is located by the entrance and has convenient drawers for people in need. It’s regularly filled with food and other goods needed by refugees in need. Inside, a community library makes great books accessible to all with a book donation box. Merchandising includes edgy t-shirts and eye masks designed by local artists.

Outside, large billboards displayed on the facade of the building celebrate diversity too with key messages such as “What if we all shared the same opportunities?” reminding audiences of important societal questions and prompting justice and kindness.

“Our greatest lessons have come from the people we’ve met along the way. Their stories have shaped who we are and have inspired us to keep doing the work we’ve committed to doing.” Joseph Chen, artist and curator of the art programme of Eaton HK says. Joseph is a fan of Anne Imhof and an artist included in Myth Makers—Spectrosynthesis III, an exhibition exploring “queer mythologies” and delving into modern and contemporary mythologies along with practices of the body. It was the ground-breaking exhibition of the Art Basel Hong Kong week and gathered a wide range artistic idioms related to LGBTQ+ perspectives from over 60 artists from Asia and its diasporas. He adds “Eaton HK creates space for marginalized communities, one of the communities is LGBTQIA+, we work with different gender and sexuality minorities changemakers and non-profit organizations and provide resources to convene events and amplify community voices. We create cultural initiatives and programmes for queer communities, like our annual festival, Pride At Eaton, sponsor our venues and technical supports to different queer organizations for community events, provide complimentary membership to queer community organizers in our co-working space, Eaton HK, raise funds and make donations to queer charities. We have hanged a rainbow flag on the building of Eaton HK since 2018 after Eaton Workshop was established to show our long term support to the community. We are one of the first corporate in Hong Kong with gender neutral toilets and create safe, private facility for transgender and non-binary friends. We have collaborated with Next Chapter, a LGBT+ wedding planner in HK and established the first gay-friendly wedding fair in HK and welcome queer couple to host wedding in Eaton HK.”

Art is central to Eaton HK through a remarkable exhibition space, site-specific friezes and artistic activations throughout the building. Partnering with Sham Shui Po art gallery Current Plans, the Food Hall currently showcases the works of Japanese wig artist and photographer Tomihiro Kono and Sayaka Maruyama. The artists have collaborated with Balenciaga to björk in the past adding even more coolness to Eaton HK. Fancy Creatures, curated by Eunice Tsang, explored ideas of surrealism, where humans, animals and plants mingled into vibrant sculptural, wearable hair art. The duo staged fantastical creatures through these instantly recognisable visuals.

With various exhibitions, and artistic residencies, Eaton HK is a vibrant space for creativity and artists. Joseph Chen continues: “My role is like an artistic director of Eaton HK and to build Eaton HK as a creative hub for local and international artists expand beyond visuals arts into performing arts, moving images, design and communications, literatures and other areas. I invited artists, performers, filmmakers, writers, designers and creatives use Eaton HK as a platform to express their artistic visions and social and ecological issues they concern, and as a communal space foster dialogue and exchange with creative community and public. I commission them for exhibitions, performances, screenings, workshops, panels, artist residencies, original artworks in the venue of Eaton HK, like Tomorrow Maybe, our art gallery, Kino, our cinema, artist studio, an atelier for artists-in-residence, and other public spaces used for cultural programmes.”

To coincide with the return of Basel Hong Kong fair, from 19 March until 30 April, Eaton HK’s art gallery presents New Pessimism: Tropical frontier by collective Tomorrow Maybe, bringing together a selection of works by Indonesian artists Natasha Tontey and Riar Rizaldi. The exhibition is based on their research of social, technological, and ecological issues rooted in the landscape and social dynamics of Indonesia. Inspired by b-grade media, popular culture, social change makings and indigenous movements, the two artists explore the aesthetic of refusal, the campiness of social tension, and the horror imagery of social ecology in the tropical frontier. “We are very pleased to be exhibited at Eaton HK. We have never shown our work in the context of a duo exhibition before, so it’s interesting that this time we discussed how to present our works—that are aesthetically distinct—in one space. It’s a great experience.” Natasha Tontey and Riar Rizaldi tell Art is Alive. “For me, it’s also a bit special because Eaton HK is located in a former cinema building. I’m a fan of cinema theatre, and considering the historical value of this building, I found it a bit more exciting.” Riar adds. Natasha is currently finishing a new video work about vampires, cyborgs, and the impact of technology on the indigenous Minahasan in Indonesia—an indigenous people in North Sulawesi where she is part of the community.

During his stay in Eaton HK, Riar just finished making two projects that he has been working on for many years. One is a full-feature film about one of the most active stratovolcanos on the planet, Mount Merapi in Java. And the other is a short sci-fi video about fossilized electronic waste that is abundant in the South and the future archaeology and petrology. “Most of the pieces in this exhibition is our personal works that potentially could not be shown in our homeland (some of them have already been banned) for various reasons—most of the time because we deal with challenging subjects/topics or use intense imagery. Essentially through this exhibition, we want to showcase our pieces that deal with the aesthetic of refusal that is also heavily inspired by pop cultures such as horror cinema and the underground scene. I guess through this exhibition we want to offer a critical point-of-view of pessimism—be it political, social, or ecological that happened in Indonesia and beyond—as an experience.” The artists continue.

Eaton HK is also a safe space for relaxation and works as a fantastic hotel. The 465 hotel rooms and suites combine all the contemporary comfort, colourful-tiled bathrooms, large tv screens, minibars, among other fantastic and practical amenities. The Hotel itself won many awards including Top Producer Award by Expedia Group, the 2020 Sustainable Winner Award loved by guests by Hotels.com and more prizes by Time Out among others. “All rooms offer conscious retreats for purpose-driven travellers with sustainability focused services, artworks by local talents, mindful and artisan amenities, and hi-tech essentials.” Harvey Thompson, Managing Director of Eaton tells Art is Alive. An adjacent bar with a fantastic cocktail menu, impeccable service and a wonderful terrace make the Hotel a vibrant place for unforgettable experiences. The breakfast is delicious with so much choice and staff are incredibly nice and helpful. This is truly the best Hotel to stay and chill out in Hong Kong.

Another glorious highlight of Eaton HK is the wonderful swimming pool and sports area located on the top floor. The iconic pink flamingos sculptures which adorn the architecture are a reference to Hong Kong’s real life flamingos living in Kowloon Park. The new interior design of the restaurant and rooms has a 70s feel and was conceptualised by design studio AvroKO. Thanks to the stunning choices of furniture, carpets, artworks on the walls, lights, the atmosphere is cosy.

The pool is one of Instagramers’ favourites and they come to Eaton HK to specifically get their picture taken. “Here, we believe hospitality is far more than a place to lay your head or enjoy a good meal. Eaton HK is a platform for community, creativity, and culture, thoughtfully designed to help you find harmony in body, mind, and spirit while providing inspiration. Eaton HK combines comfort, simplicity, and impeccable functionality in 465 rooms and suites.” Harvey Thompson adds. The Hotel is pet-friendly, has complimentary wi-fi, 24/7 service, valet parking, daily laundry, and the wellness centre is remarkable. Eaton HK represents the future of hospitality and hotel experiences. It’s integrates cultural programming at every level and offers safe spaces for everyone.

Cherry on the cake, Eaton HK has a sister location in the US. Eaton DC, Eaton Workshop’s flagship hotel in downtown DC, is also a welcoming and inclusive cultural hub for kindred spirits, locals, and travelers alike, to convene, collaborate, and create. Within walking distance of the Smithsonian museums, Black Lives Matter Plaza, Capitol Hill, and the Convention Center, guests can be a part of the culture of a world-class city and enjoy the comforts of a boutique hotel.

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