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Those of us who grew up in Hong Kong families will be well familiar with mahjong. It doesn’t matter if your grandmother hosted weekly games with her friends or whether the mahjong ‘briefcase’ only came out during Lunar New Year, this is an ancient entertainment that is an indelible part of Chinese culture. A young local artist known by the fitting pseudonym Mr Mahjong has been creating special mahjong tile designs for a few years now, and he is putting on an exhibition that celebrates the classic game, contemporary art, and a particular popular pocket of Central.
Shin Hing Street, home to a handful of bars and eateries, is a rare enclave in the busy heart of Hong Kong that can feel like a neighbourhood tucked away from the hyped tourist areas of Rome or Paris. While named a street, it is technically a long flight of stairs linking Hollywood Road to Gough Street, which provides the perfect spot for late afternoon punters or nighttime drinkers to sit and relax right on the street.
Mr Mahjong has reached out to nine restaurants, cafés, and bars on Shin Hing Street, using them as inspiration for Hong Kong’s first mahjong street art exhibition. 15 art pieces carved and painted into little mahjong tiles will be dotted along the street, including some hidden installations tucked into unassuming spots, waiting to be discovered like Easter eggs.
Without spoiling any locations too much, some of these works include a set of tiles featuring the agave plant for our famous mezcal bar Coa, little sushi pieces for Sakaba Masaka, a fluffy sheep for the lamb-centric restaurant Kyanbasu by Mt. Yotei, wine bottles with small plants for the wine shop and cellar La Cabane, and more. One of the bonus pieces is a set of White Dragon mahjong tiles – but one of the tiles has been transformed into a wobbly Ditto Pokémon! We’ve yet to find this art piece, but it’s likely already our favourite.
To echo the sense of community among the business owners and regular patrons of Shin Hing Street, Mr Mahjong will also include a charitable segment to his exhibition: for every Instagram story posted of the event and the artwork, and tagged with @mmj_hk, $10 will be donated to support a local animal NGO. Stop by the Out of the Brew taproom and recreate their rocket artwork out of shuffled mahjong tiles under a time limit to get a free craft beer as well!
Mr Mahjong’s Shin Hing Street art exhibition will run from May 29 to 31, so stop by to find all 15 art pieces and appreciate the artistry of traditional and modern mahjong.
PS. We have an in-depth interview with Mr Mahjong coming out soon, so keep an eye out!
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