Hong Kong's Winter Sky lit up for its first Pulse Light Festival

There is no better time to visit Hong Kong than this winter, so says the Hong Kong tourism authorities.  And  so here I am just when the temperature starts to drop, dipping ever so slightly from mid-20s to the high-teens.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is launching the inaugural Hong Kong Pulse Light Festival 2018, running between 29 November 2018 and 24 February 2019, covering the Christmas season, New Year and Lunar New Year celebrations.

The first Hong Kong Pulse Light Festival turns the city harbourfront 

into a playground of luminous artworks.  Photo from the Hong Kong Tourist Board.

It is billed to be the largest open-air light festival in this vibrant cosmopolitan city.  From the enhancement of “A Symphony of Lights” light-and-music show featuring more skyscrapers and special effects, to brilliantly lit installations by artists from  11 countries including France, Italy, Japan, Israel, Singapore, Hungary, the US and India, along with four createdby Hong Kong designers.  

The HK$23 million (USD2.939 m) festival is expected to draw about 500,000 visitors to the Central district harbourfront, according to organisers at the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB)  

If you are able to come to this amazing city this winter, you will be treated to a list of visually enriching events:- 

Winter Wonderland

A total of 18 art installations by artists from around the world will be on display along the beautiful Victoria Harbour.   

The creative luminescent displays offer a futuristic interactive experience in addition to Instagram-worthy photo opportunities, including: The brilliant cephalic illustration “Talking Heads” by Viktor Vicsek from Hungary will come to life via animated facial expressions that change colours at night. Interactive light bicycles “Lightbattle X” by VENIVIDIMULTIPLEX from the Netherlands will be on display for spectators to immerse themselves in a competitive and warm-spirited racing game; whereas the premiere exhibition of “Bat and Coin” by the Daydreamers from Hong Kong turns the traditional pawnshop sign into a larger-than-life illuminated silhouette. 

Bright Skies Ahead 

Dubbed as the one of the world’s most spectacular light shows, “A Symphony of Lights” is a nightly light show along Victoria Harbour for this Christmas and New Year. The additional skyscrapers participating in the coordinated production and pyrotechnics from building rooftops adding highlights to the show on selected evenings will usher in the holiday season.  

A Tale of Two Trees 

A 25-metre-tall artistic reinterpretation of the traditional Christmas tree will be installed adjacent to the Observation Wheel. The “XTree” by France’s 1024 Architecture is made with lit-up metallic scaffoldings that represent branches, and augmented by strategically placed light decorations that dance to a matching soundtrack.  Hong Kong’s Christmas atmosphere is further enhanced by the much-anticipated iconic Christmas Tree at Statue Square, enticing visitors with its sparkling festive display.

Along with a range of magical winter celebration activities taking place at key attractions across the city, festive seasonal events and night tours, these festivities promise to spice up visitors’ holiday season with an unforgettable visual voyage in Hong Kong. 

Hong Kong Pulse Light Festival Event Information 

Key Activities	Date & Time	Location
International Light Art Display	29 November 2018 – 24 February 2019 Lights on at 5:00pm – 11:00pm daily (except on 29 November 2018 - 7:45pm – 11:00pm)	Central and Western District Promenade (Central Section)
A Symphony of Lights	Enhanced version from 29 November 2018 onwards, 8:00pm – 8:10pm daily Pyrotechnic display on 29 November, 1, 8, 12, 15, 22, 29 December 2018	Best vantage location in Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade and night cruise tours
Christmas Tree	29 November 2018 – 1 January 2019 Lights on at 5:00pm – 11:00pm daily (except on 29 November 2018 - 7:45pm – 11:00pm)	Near Hong Kong Observation Wheel
Iconic Christmas Tree	29 November 2018 – 1 January 2019	North Statue Square, Central

Dolce & Gabbana in deep water as Chinese consumers reject its mis-judged advertising campaign

I wonder what founders of the Italian luxury fashion label Dolce & Gabbana are having for breakfast this morning.  By sunset on my first day of this current trip to Hong Kong, a popular shopping destination for Chinese mainland consumers, which is also seven hours ahead of Europe's time zone,  news was circling that the list of the world's online luxury goods retailers dropping products from Dolce & Gabbana is growing, joining the likes of Alibaba, Yoox Net-a-Porter, the Outnet and Yoox.

Sunset over the Victoria harbour in Hong Kong.  

Photos © Lucia Carpio

Even Lane Crawford, a luxury Hong Kong-based department store, has also announced they are pulling the Italian brand from its stores.  This is definitely bad news for the Italian label when Chinese consumers are spending billions of dollars shopping for luxury goods, much of it is on line.

The controversy started after Dolce & Gabbana's tongue in cheek advertising campaign featuring a Chinese lady struggling to eat pizza and spaghetti with chopsticks.  Despite the Italian label's issuing an apology on video by both its founders - Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana  - asking for forgiveness for the misunderstanding and both designers saying "sorry" in Mandarin, Chinese social media users heaped scorn on the apology, saying it lacked sincerity, noting that the video only posted to Weibo and that the Instagram advertisements had yet to be removed, according to a report in Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (owned by Alibaba).

Dolce & Gabbana had to cancel  their Shanghai fashion show on Wednesday which was billed to be one of the brand's biggest ever events outside Italy.  It was also meant to be a high profile event with many top celebrities and actors booked to make their appearances.

While many will argue about the cultural attitudes and differences between China and Italy, the irony of this whole incident is that both countries have a lot in common, especially in the area of  food and fashion which are in the centre of their respective cultures.  Chinese people care very much about their attire and have a long history in fine tailoring, and the Italians are the same.  Culinary experts would point out that Chinese noodles and green onion dough cakes can find their similarity in pastas and pizzas.  But there's a fine line between drawing similarities and judging the mood of a prospective customer base.  The Italian brand should know better with its success in the global fashion market that it's best not to take anything for granted.  National pride and the growing power of the Chinese consumers cannot be underestimated.

Squids and Sharks everywhere....

No, we're not under water but the giant stuffed shark and squid are inside British designer Christopher Raeburn's new shop at Coal Drops Yard - the new retail destination near London's King's Cross off Granary Square. Fabulous!  The only stretch of water near here is the Regent's Canal.

One of Raeburn's signature works, apart from his being a master in recycling and repurposing materials, is featuring animal mascots in his designs and this Autumn and Winter, his current collection showcases sea creatures swirling on a sweatshirt or knitted brightly into the motif of another top.

At a time when the world is waking up to the destruction and pollution caused by plastics in our open waters, it is definitely a good way to remind ourselves of the life forms that seas provide and support.

Photos by Lucia Carpio.

Some Christmas retail cheer: Mintel forecasts growth of 4% for UK sales in December

With the Christmas countdown in full swing, retail researchers Mintel is forecasting some festive cheer for Britain’s retailers. Latest findings predicts that December’s retail sales will reach £47.7 billion (incl. VAT), growing a respectable 4% compared to last December, when sales hit £45.8 billion.  

Coal Drops Yard new shopping mall - a stunning new favourite retail destination in King's Cross, London, near Granary Square. 

Photos © Lucia Carpio

Sales through non-food retailers are expected to reach £23.5 billion (including £4 billion from online sales generated by physical stores); while food retailers will enjoy sales of £18.6 billion (including £1.4 billion from online sales generated by physical stores). And in the battle between the clicks and bricks, Mintel estimates that internet pure players (online only retailers), will account for £5.6 billion worth of sales.

Mintel December 2018 retail forecast: Non-food retailers (stores + online)  £23.5 bn Food retailers (stores + online)  £18.6 bn Online pure players  £5.6 bn  Total  £47.7 bn With online sales generated by physical non-food and food stores estimated to hit £5.4 billion, combined with the £5.6 billion generated by internet pure players, Mintel expects total online sales this December will be worth £11 billion.   Caravane, one of the upmarket retail shops in Coal Drops Yard, King's Cross, London Richard Perks, Director of Retail Research at Mintel, said: “We think that retailers can look forward to a reasonably good Christmas—not outstanding, but it won’t be bad either. While there are some reasons to be cautious, such as falling consumer confidence, there is no real sign of an underlying slowdown in retail sales growth. Retail sales have held up well this year and we expect the recent momentum is likely to be maintained, with retail sales growing at about 4% both in the final quarter of 2018 and in December itself. “While there’s been much talk of how the High Street is being undermined by online retailing, it still only represents a relatively small part of overall retail sales, with most shopping still taking place in physical stores.” Black Friday still stokes interest, but most Brits think discounts are overhyped Black Friday is now well and truly entrenched in the shopping calendar. According to Mintel research, last year nearly six in ten (57%) Brits browsed for goods during Black Friday promotions, while 41% made a purchase during the event. It’s proving a big hit with the nation’s 25-34s, of whom 75% said they browsed for goods and 62% made a purchase. While Black Friday has been synonymous with scenes of crowding bargain hunters, last year just 16% of Brits engaged with the event in-store, with the majority of shoppers engaging online  (56%). Electrical goods were the most  popular purchase, bought by 51% of Black Friday consumers in 2017, followed by fashion, which was purchased by 42% of these consumers. Overall, half (51%) of last year’s Black Friday shoppers said the majority of the purchases they made during the promotions were Christmas gifts. Meanwhile, a savvy six in ten (61%) Black Friday shoppers said they waited for the Black Friday promotions before making a purchase. However, despite the hype, some cynics remain as 66% of 2017 Black Friday shoppers felt the discounts were not as good as they’re made out to be. “While Black Friday has become a high profile retail fixture, retailers do run the risk of bringing forward festive spending, but at discounted prices. There is always a fear of missing out, so the actual outcome is the big unknown for how the retail sector will perform this Christmas. Given some evidence of growing disillusionment among shoppers for Black Friday, Mintel predicts that retailers would like to pull back from promotions for this event. We think that this year’s event will be no bigger than last year’s, and that means good news for the amount of money left over to spend in December.” Concluded Richard.

Photos by Lucia Carpio.

Happy 90th Birthday, Mickey Mouse

Mickey Mouse is 90 years old.
Congratulations Mickey and thank you for all the fun and entertainment you've provided us all these years.

Ingersoll Limited Edition The Walt Disney Quartz Gents Mickey Mouse Watch.

Photo: Lucia Carpio

Water - precious medium for many cultures in the Pacific as highlighted in Oceania

An intensely blue 11-metre installation ‘Kiko Moana’ (made in multi-layers of polyethylene and cotton), which hangs in the opening room of the Oceania exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London's Piccadilly, sets the mood for what to expect.  It's displayed in the centre of the room with on one wall an imposing map showing the great stretch of water of the Pacific in which cultures in island groups have lived throughout the centuries.

Photos © Lucia Carpio

The shape and colour of water as well as deep tones and intimate hues serve well to take visitors on a journey in the Oceania exhibition to explore a treasure trove of some 200 artefacts, exceptional art and amazing crafts -   materials that various cultures and island civilisations in the Pacific used covering "shell, greenstone and ceramic ornaments, to huge canoes and stunning god images."

Spanning 500 years. Oceania showcases impressive techniques and provides insights into the life of the indigenous populations encountered by Captain James Cook on his voyage to the unknown lands in the vast ocean.  

Impressive to view is New Zealand artist Lisa Reihana's in Pursuit of Venus (infected ) -2015-17 single-channel ultra HD video set up in a room of its own.  It presents in a continuously running screen scenes of encounters between Polynesians and Europeans, acknowledging "the nuances and complexities of cultural identities and colonisation."

And John Pule's Kehe te Hauaga foou (To all new arrivals - 2017) is a fascinating painting to round up the exhibition.   It serves as a map of the Pacific ocean providing a perspective "onto the nature of worldwide reality.  

Look intensely closer, and study the images. depicted on the painting  You will find images of various representations of our world today, "bombs and nuclear testing are contrasted with pollution and global warming. 

All photos © Lucia Carpio

Meanwhile ... 

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The Salamander Devours its Tail Twice launching at Gallery 46

By Various Artists

Show Runs: Sunday 18 November – Wednesday 5 December 2018

Venue:  Gallery 46, Ashfield Street, London, E1 2AJ

An upcoming event organised by Londonewcastle is  The Salamander Devours its Tail Twice (17 November - 5 December 2018), an international group exhibition at East London’s Gallery 46 that brings together 26 established and emerging artists who will explore what it means to be human.

Curated by New York-based artist Ashley Middleton, the showcase will feature a diverse collection of works across a variety of mediums including sculpture, installation, performance, video, photography, painting and print. 

The Sweet Stench of Sulfur, 2018 by Michelle Gevint 

Londonewcastle has created developments in London for the design-conscious for the past three decades. Their core belief is to bring outstanding architecture to mixed-use developments, delivering the highest quality buildings, public realms and cultural destinations.

From left to right: Spinning Wheel, 2018 by Kawita Vatanajyankur and A Bigger Splash, 2018 by Alexander Glass

Gallery 46, housed in a pair of renovated Georgian houses in the grounds of Whitechapel Hospital and set over 3 floors and 8 rooms, is a kaleidoscopic addition to Whitechapel’s burgeoning gallery scene and its artistic heart, the nearby Whitechapel Gallery.

Shallow Leaning, 2018 by Aaron Hegert 

Photos from Gallery 46.

The Salamander Devours its Tail Twice  will feature work from the following artists: Yambe Tam, Adeline de Monseignat, Chantal Powell, Thomas Kuijpers, Katie Ellen Fields, Alice Irwin, Kawita Vatanajyankur, Thomas Adam, Saskia Fischer, Michelle Gevint, Sarah Howe, Jan Dams, Alexander Glass, Stewart Hardie, Andrew Hart, Aaron Hegert, Stuart Jones, Dominic Till, Victor Seaward, Ashley Middleton, Brett Wallace, Luca Bosani, Patrick Gallagher, Ella Belenky, Seungwon Jung, and Chris Klapper. 

The title The Salamander Devours its Tail Twice is taken from a passage in Fahrenheit 451 (1953), the award-winning dystopian novel by American author Ray Bradbury. The story explores a futuristic society where books have been prohibited and specialist ‘firemen’ have been instructed to burn all physical literature. Written during the McCarthy era, Bradbury was said to have used the novel to express his own fears of book burning in the United States at the time.

The passage refers to the conceived annihilation of a cultural system, and served as a curatorial guide to selecting artists for the show. The artists participating in this exhibition were selected for their curiosity and understanding of the world through their sensed experiences, each artist oscillating between self-understanding and cultural expectation. Located somewhere in the middle, they create an extension of themselves, a mirror from which they may better understand their position in the present, relation to the past, and anxieties around the future.

For this show, Curator Ashley Middleton examined her personal experience of living between two locations, London and New York, and all the objects, relations and comforts acquired and lost along the way. This fractured style of living forced Ashley to confront the exchange  between the two lives she was living, encouraging her to become more mindful about her place in the moment, instead of focusing on what the moment should bring to her. 

Mintel announces three global food and drink trends for 2019

At this time of the year, food and drinks are very much on our minds, as we’re deciding on the menu for our Christmas lunch, or even the venue that offers the best festive food options for our company Christmas party.

Whatever we plan to do, will issues of sustainability, health and wellness,  one way or another, guide our decisions?  Recent reports point to the growing popularity of a Vegan lifestyle and that millennials are going teetotal.  Definitely festive celebrations are not as straight forward as it used to be.

Co-op Winter Dessert Collection.  The Co-op was the first, and continues to be, the only UK retailer to have 100% Fairtrade chocolate bar range. This winter they’re going all out with some spectacular festive flavours including sticky toffee pudding, double chocolate fondant and Christmas pudding chocolate treats.

According to Mintel, a leading market intelligence agency, three forward-looking trends which will lead the momentum of global food and drink innovation in 2019 and beyond in that issues of sustainability, health and wellness, and convenience will inspire formulation, packaging, marketing and more in the years to come:

In Mintel’s 2019 Global Food and Drink Trends report, the three trends revealed are as follows:-  

Evergreen Consumption: A circular view of sustainability that spans the entire product lifecycle requires action from suppliers to consumers.   

Through the Ages: Food and drink will build on today’s dialogue about wellness and transition into more solutions for healthy ageing. 

Elevated Convenience: To match the premium expectations of consumers in the on-demand age, convenience food and drink will get an upgrade.

La Riojana Tilimuqui Fairtrade Organic Malbec available at Waitrose. La Riojana’s Tilimuqui wine is grown in the remote north of Argentina where arid soils give rise to grapes bursting with ripeness. This is an intense Malbec that is a great accompaniment to any Christmas dinner, or to savour over cheese on a wonderful winter night!

Looking ahead, Jenny Zegler, Associate Director, Mintel Food and Drink, said: 

“In 2019, support of and demand for more corporate sustainability programmes will grow as consumers better understand what’s required to get closer to achieving a truly circular food and drink economy. These sustainability efforts will include not only improving access to recycling, but creating products with ingredients that are grown in accordance to regenerative agriculture practices.

“Expect to also see food and drink manufacturers look to the beauty and personal care industry for inspiration for healthy ageing product development. More food and drink will address longevity-related health concerns, be marketed with positive language that rejects terms like ‘anti-ageing’ for its negative connotations, and appeal across ages.   

The All Dark Vegan Chocolate Hamper Collection from Hotel Chocolat this Christmas.

“Finally, we predict the rising segment of consumers who are often on-the-go, yet want to spend more time at home will increase demand for upscale, ‘speed scratch’ solutions and restaurant-quality, ready-to-consume products. As meal kits and foodservice-inspired beverages lead the way, there will also be more opportunities for brands to develop healthy, flavourful, customisable, and quick premium convenience products for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and dessert occasions.”

TO KICK OFF BRITISH SUGAR AWARENESS WEEK, SPLENDA LAUNCHES A GIANT SUGAR PYRAMID IN ST PAULS, LONDON

With the festive season fast approaching, supermarkets and Christmas shops are promoting all the goodies for this time of the year:  cakes, pies, chocolates, cookies, shortbreads, and the list goes on and on.
But do you know how much sugar you are really eating?

It's British Sugar awareness Week and Splenda sweetener brand has launched a giant Sugar Pyramid in St Pauls, London to raise awareness that Brits are eating twice the amount of annual recommended sugar.  Photo: Splenda.

Ethical brand From Belo launches new Eko collection

There is no doubt that reports of plastic pollution have made headline news in these two years and consumers have been awaken to the global problem that has caused environmental devastation.

Two ladies who were upset by such reports decided to take matters into their own hands and launch a handbag and accessories collection made from recycled and sustainable materials. Thus the ethical brand From Belo was born, set up by school friends and long-distance business partners Maria Costa, 28, who lives in Brazil and Charlotte Bingham-Wallis also 28, based in the UK.

Although 5,000 miles apart, they are united with an aim to have a brand centred on being kind and fashioning kindness. 

From Belo launches the EKO Collection

The new collection will be available from 17/11/18.  From Belo will also be celebrating on Saturday November 17th at the Cambridge Sustainable Fashion Festival at St Banabas Church (11am to 4pm) and then Sunday November 18th in London at the Bricklane Up market (10am – 6pm).

Not only did the two partners start an ethical brand that offers practical, responsibly-made products which fit with their values, they also made an effort to ensure they offer ethical working conditions, fair wages and employment for their artisans based in Brazil, as well as providing an opportunity to give back to Casa De Maria  - an organisation which helps feed the homeless and those in need in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

From Belo is no stranger to the jet set lifestyle either. Earlier this year they were finalists at the prestigious Handbag Designer Awards in the Most Socially Responsible Handbag category.

And this autumn they have launched the EKO Collection,  a vegan range using seatbelts and plastic bottles once destined for landfill and reincarnated into beautiful things and given a second life.

The range includes coin purses to tote bags, as well as a bucket bag which can be worn four ways, a clutch bag, a wine holder, a market bag and a make-up bag - all handmade with recycled materials, carrying their signature hummingbird motif - a symbol of the enjoyment of life and the lightness of being.

Each item is named in honour of the kind volunteers that work at the Casa De Maria charitable organisation.  

Maximum colour, bold patterns, warm scents.

As temperatures start to drop and the nights are drawing in, we take refuge in our home.  According to design houses in Europe and the UK, interiors should be filled with warm colours, rich patterns and great textures.   Think artfully arranged vibrant colours and wallpaper so patterned to make your heart feel warm.  And what better place to get inspiration than to take cues from nature.

The Swedish brand Boråstapeter Scandinavian Designers 11 wallpaper collection is a timeless range of designs for wall decor.  From geometric functional designs style of Arne Jacobsen to the decorative fairytale designs of Stig Lindberg.  Sketched foliage by Viola Gråsten . All the patterns in the collection have a natural, colourful and imaginative touch that make them a perfect compliment to the understated, clean Scandinavian interior scheme. Classic and contemporary have never been more on point.

Also just launched are scented candles from British designer Tom Dixon to bring luminosity and comfort to your interior this season.

"The more I get to understand the designing of spaces as well as objects, the more I realize that there are a series of intangibles that can be just as important as the usual interior-design armoury of colour, light and shape." Tom Dixon.

Tom Dixon Fire candles:  Scent Notes: Cypriol oil, black suede accord, guaiac, wood oil, vertiver oil, amber, musk. 

FIRE is part of the Elements collection. A complex assemblage of Cypriol oil, musk and amber to construct the scent of smoky scorched timber and hot dry tarmac.

Stone on the other hand is part of the Materialism collection. A set of heavy, generous, smooth containers made from forest green marble and turned by hand in India. Each rocky, rounded heavyweight container is unique due to the particularities of each individual block of marble. This forms the optimum vessel for the dry exotic fig and sandalwood essence.

Most shoppers would be tempted back to the high street if retailers offer original and British made goods

Shoppers are bored with the current offering on the high street ... 

... according to Matthew Hopkins, founder of retail sourcing specialist The Great British Exchange following a survey that  revealed 91% of British shoppers would visit high street stores more frequently if they could buy items that are hard to find anywhere else. 

Hand screen-printed Christmas sack from The Handmade Christmas Co.
founded in 2012 by Louis Porter and Tom Coleman
to offer a modern alternative to the traditional Christmas stocking.
All products hand-finished in the UK in a London-based studio.
Photo: The Handmade Christmas Co.

At a time when bricks and mortar retailers are finding it challenging to compete with online businesses as we enter the crucial Christmas shopping season, Hopkins said it has never been more important for retailers to find a point of difference that sets them apart from the store down the road.

“Even more critical is the need to give consumers something they can’t find online,” he added in response to the findings that almost all shoppers questioned would use bricks and mortar stores more often if it meant being able to find something “unique” and two thirds said they wanted more locally made and British manufactured products on the shelves.

The Great British Exchange study found that 20 per cent of the shoppers surveyed did more than half of their shopping online. 

However, when asked about their priorities when buying food products, 82% said the least important factor was online availability. One in 5 valued provenance and the fact that the goods were locally produced above anything else when buying food products and gifts.

Special occasion shopping was one of the biggest challenges faced by consumers, according to the research, with more than half of those questioned demanding easier access to unique and British made gift products.

Shoppers also said flexible opening times, including late night opening and in-store events, would encourage them to shop on the high street more often.

Hopkins of The Great British Exchange added: “People often say bricks and mortar retail is dead but I disagree. It just needs to be done well and that means injecting some excitement and originality into a pastime that has lost its soul.”