Recently, many custom neon sign makers in Hong Kong expressed concern about the loss of the art. The neon signboards that once lined the streets of Hong Kong are being gradually replaced with LED lights. Master Wu Zhikai is the only remaining master of neon signs in Hong Kong. He has been making neon signs for more than thirty years.
Master Hu Zhikai told Xinhuanet in an interview that he had started making neon lights at age 17. His original studio is now located in a Kwai Chung building. The area is 30 square meters. This makes it quite cramped for making neon lights. Hu Zhikai was only able to receive a limited number of orders this year. Liu Wen joined the industry back in 1957. He is also a Hong Kong neon signs maker and a close friend of Hu Zhikai. He said that he was concerned that this craft would disappear.
Hu Zhikai (a neon sign master) is Hong Kong’s second-youngest. However, among the ten or more remaining neon sign masters, they have nothing to learn from them. Hu Zhikai said, “Like any other industry if the company is booming there will be new talent.” “If the industry is not populated with people, there won’t be any business.”
Many neon signs all over the globe are being removed frequently
Sir William Ramsay was a Scottish chemist who discovered a gas that could resist liquefaction and would glow bright red when electrified. He gave the gas his name “neon”. In my country, the first neon advertisement appeared in Shanghai’s Evans Library, Nanjing East Road. Shanghai Far East Chemical Manufacturing Factory produced the first neon lamp for my country in 1927. They used it in Shanghai Central Hotel. My country began to develop its neon lights in the 1930s. There were 30 neon light factories by 1949. Today, neon lights have been gradually fading from people’s view.
A unique cultural landscape is Hong Kong’s neon-lit billboards. The neon lights that are interwoven across the city signify Hong Kong’s wealth and excitement. First-time visitors can see how bright the night is in Hong Kong is by looking at the neon lights. The neon signs in Hong Kong are more than just a sign of business. They are also a representation of Hong Kong’s daily culture and entertainment. Wong Kar–wai directs “Chongqing Forest”, “Fallen Angels”, and other films that feature neon lights. They play an integral part in the plot’s development and shaping the psychology.
A landmark is the giant neon cow hanging above a Hong Kong steakhouse in Hong Kong’s western district. Sammy Restaurant is the restaurant. The neon sign was designed by Sammy Restaurant. The sign’s Angus cow was the first with four long legs. However, the Hong Kong Buildings Department declared the signboard unsafe in 2011 and requested its removal. It was removed from the streets in August 2015. Since the 1990s, neon lighting has been declining in Hong Kong. According to the master who designed the neon signs in Hong Kong, Hong Kong’s architectural plans became more strict. LED custom neon signs now make new billboards, but they don’t emit the same warmth as neon lights. The advantages of LED lighting are its low cost, easy maintenance, and longer life span.
Neon lights were an iconic feature of Shanghai’s past. The famous Shanghai bamboo branch poem, “How bright the trees and the silver flowers are, and there is much light in the Western competition for business,” was once widely distributed. The electric signboard is the electric halo, which is made up of thousands upon thousands of stars. This poem describes Shanghai’s night scene. Shanghai’s nightlife becomes more lively with the bright lights. There are only a few historic neon signs that you can see in Shanghai. Victor Chiang, a photographer who was attracted to Shanghai’s neon night scene, took many unique photos of Shanghai night. The old streets are filled with neon lights, as can be seen in many photos. But, it is becoming harder to see “authentic” neon lights.
The west has lost the glory of neon lights. Vancouver, Canada used to be known as the “Neon Capital”. For publicity purposes, neon lights were used in advertisements and decorations outside churches. Vancouver’s output of striped neon lights was the first in the world at that point. On average, one neon sign existed for every 18 people. It was also home to the largest neon light anywhere in the globe. The decline of neon lighting has not stopped with the advent of commercial technology.
Neon lights are a unique art form
The Paris Motor Show in 1910 saw the first neon lights. The exterior lights of the building were illuminated in different colors, attracting the attention and curiosity of everyone who was there. Custom neon signs should not be used indoors. They are best used in areas where there is street signage and commercial areas. The most commonly used neon lights in a city are those found in barbershops. It is a natural pairing with neon lights because of its urban charm. After a while neon lights made their way to the United States. In 1939, neon lights were used as decorations at the New York World Fair. Many companies were happy to use them to promote their products.
Beyond the commercial appeal of neon lights, neon lighting has also played a role in “political communication” between Eastern European countries. To be strong, the Soviet Union started the “ionization” of Eastern European capitals during the 1960s. Many public buildings have neon lights outside of Warsaw. Eastern European citizens can see very interesting scenes when they travel around the globe and see neon lights surrounding old-fashioned political slogans.
They are more than just decorative. These neon lights are a popular choice for science fiction books and have helped promote the creation of cyberpunk art. Because the neon lights are bright and can show a variety of stark contrasts, such as the opposition between wealth and decadence, the interlacing and reality of the future, or the contrast of rich and poor, it has been a prominent background in sci-fi movies about cyberpunk.
Cyberpunk refers to a type of science fiction that depicts “a combination of high tech and low life”. Cyberpunk authors use elements from detective novels as well as film noir and postmodernism to present a dark side of digital society over the past two decades. The dystopian world that cyberpunk creates is the opposite of the utopian society most people imagined in the mid-20th Century. Because of cyberpunk’s unique style, many adapted movies like interlacing light and shadow. And neon lights are often their choice. Image credit: Cyberpunk conception via Sergii Golotovskiy
Pop Art developed in the 20th century thanks to neon lights. Pop Art is now history, but its enormous influence on the American art world is still felt today. Pop Art is a strong booster of American culture. Pop Art’s popularity is what prompted the rise of various anti-art movements in the 1960s & 1970s. Pop artists were driven by American consumerism. They were also influenced by the uniform advertisements that appeared on television and in magazines, as well as the blurred neon light at night. These artists have heavily incorporated brightly-colored elements of neon artwork into their works.
Art is saved in many ways by artists
Although neon light is being replaced by more energy-saving lamps with LEDs, and it is becoming harder to see neon signboards on the street, more people are beginning to miss this kind of cultural heritage. Artists and regions across the globe have found different ways to save this visual culture.
These custom neon sign museums have been established in many countries. California’s Museum of Neon Art has a large collection of neon signs. There are many different neon signs displayed throughout the museum. The museum has a collection that includes neon signs from abandoned, disused, or thrown-away neon signs. The majority of the neon signs were sourced from abandoned dumps. The opening of the museum sparked a nostalgia wave in America. These vintage neon signs display the light that once shined in the capital in the last century. A large number of curators and artists in Hong Kong are trying to rescue such art. The neon lights were an integral part of the identity of Hong Kongers. The M+ Museum is a museum that collects neon signs from Hong Kong. This museum specializes in online photos of neon signs in Hong Kong, as well as collecting demolished neon signage. The Sammy restaurant’s neon cow was demolished in an unfortunate incident. However, the museum now houses it in the M+.
The “City Street*Signboard” art exhibition is held at North Point, Hong Kong Island from February 24th through May 10th. The exhibition organizers believe that the neon signs placed on streets throughout the history of Hong Kong have multiplied over time, influencing the urban appearance of Hong Kong. Kevin and Ken, who are the founders and architects of the company, plan to display the unique characteristics of neon signboards using the lighting installation of City Street*Signboards to increase the public’s awareness about the artistic merit of neon lights.
Many artists have found an alternative way to save the neon culture. NameGlo, a company that produces custom neon lights, was founded in 2014 by Lena Imamura (Sas Simon) and Lena Imamura (Lena Imamura). NameGlo focuses primarily on interior design. NameGlo aims to make neon lights more than just decorative items. The unique aspect of NameGlo is the transparent process that makes neon signs, which allows customers to design neon lights according to their artistic preferences. Lena Imamura explained that neon sign art still holds great importance in modern art. Services like our company will help bring people closer to their neon signs. Neon art is not dying art. An account was set up for neon new york city, which is the neon lights of New York City. The neon lights are an iconic symbol of nightlife in New York City and economic prosperity.