Actually, Hong Kong is not a city at all. Hong Kong is a "Special Administrative Zone" made up of many individual cities such as Kowloon, Victoria, Kwai Chung and so on.
More than seven million inhabitants crowd a little more than a thousand square kilometers - almost as many people as in all of Switzerland, except that the Alpine country has a surface 40 times larger.
British crown colony until 1997, then handed over to the People's Republic of China, enjoys Hong Kong within China relative autonomy and special rights, a value which is highly controversial among the Hong Kong Chinese. In view of an unrestrained influx and infiltration by People's Republic of China and an ever stronger infiltration of the administration by system-conforming politicians, one fears a loss of the last autonomy.
Regardless, this fabled metropolis of the Far East remains a spectacular and intriguing destination, long after the days of the raging opium caves, sluggish smuggler junks and bloody gang wars.
Strolling through the constantly changing street canyons, the change from the Chinese Moloch to the modern cosmopolitan city alone is architecturally unmistakable.
The French artist Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze has succeeded with his camera and his ingenious artistic eye to capture a completely new and unique perspective of Hong Kong.
Viewpoints that emphasize the imposing aesthetics of the Chinese metropolis and highlight the beauty of a truly functional architecture. Perspectives that, however, also let you feel the minuteness of man down here in the tangle of streets and alleys of this cosmopolitan city.
And now just sit back, enjoy and marvel - Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze:
(from the illustrated book "Vertical Horizon", courtesy of Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze, http://www.rjl-art.com)
Glass skyscraper in shopping district Tsim Sha Tsui.
The typical mix of small old buildings side by side with modern skyscrapers in the west of Hong Kong.
Change of Perspective: Interior of a skyscraper in Tai Hang from above.
The epitome of the buzzword "skyscraper" - reaching up into the sky
Our favorite image! The mirrored front of the Wan Chai skyscraper reflects sun, clouds and people.
If you choose the right perspective, sewage pipes on exterior walls can also become art …
Romain Jacquet-Lagrèze calls this work "The Echo" - the golden quadrilaterals repeat themselves into the sky. This architectural feature is a residential building in Kwai Tsing.
It's like in real life: changing the perspective, completely new perspectives arise. The view from below, the geometric shapes and the play of colors create an almost abstract work of art. Everywhere people are living …
Social housing of earlier years with room for millions of people in Hong Kong. Today a discontinued model, which must give way to new residential buildings.