Architectural Cross-Section of Kowloon Walled City
The article explores the architectural layout of the Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong, demolished in the 1990s. A detailed cross-section illustration reveals the densely populated enclave's unique living conditions.
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The article discusses the architectural cross-section of the Kowloon Walled City, a unique and densely populated enclave in Hong Kong that was demolished in the early 1990s. The city housed around 35,000 inhabitants in an incredibly dense living arrangement, with 1.3 individuals per square meter. A Japanese research team documented the city's structure in a 1997 book, featuring a detailed cross-section illustration. The author of the article obtained a high-resolution version of this panorama to provide a closer look at the miniature lives within the city. The post reflects on the significance of individual stories within such a densely populated community and the challenges of depicting cities in art. The detailed illustration offers viewers a glimpse into the lives of the city's residents and serves as a cultural reference and cyberpunk touchstone. The article concludes by inviting readers to explore the full image to appreciate the intricate details captured in the cross-section.
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24 commentsI suppose, having written the old Mac computer game Glider, it might be obvious why I am drawn to it since it kind of looks like an insanely large "house" that someone might have created for the game.
On the other hand I feel like I have had dreams in spaces that I imagine are like this — and I feel like these dreams may have pre-dated the game I wrote?
Or maybe it's a kind of Blade Runner vibe of the future that the city gives off — or like the early police chase scene in Chung King Express ... [1]
I imagine it as having both good and bad qualities. I imagine crime is always present — but that too exploration is always there too. A younger me would have loved to try to get lost, try to find my way home.
https://staging.cohostcdn.org/attachment/11357255-b6b9-4a57-...
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/cd/ed/93/cded9349a59088ff02dcf6017...
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Kowloon_...
atm battling roaches in my apt so first thought looking at that ^ was wondering how many millions of cockroaches lived in that thing.
It reminds me of the hive cities of Warhammer 40k.
Another analysis of Kowloon I enjoyed is this one by the architect Dami Lee [1].
[1] https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WLn_QTFVZgE&pp=ygUFIzJhYWI%3D
It reminds me of "Doubling Up" the 1946 drawing by Saul Steinberg that was one of the sources for Georges Perec's "Life a User's Manual" which - no spoilers - is a book set in a similar densely populated building (aside: a couple of years ago I pitched a Playdate game based on these things) https://www.fitzroyandfinn.co.uk/journal/georges-perec
There are plenty of illegal buildings, modified for residence in a haphazard manner with shoulder-width roads passing underneath them.
I also wish I had a chance to visit his megastructure. Sure it was a slum but an epic one at that.
There used to be an incredible multi-story arcade outside Tokyo, あなたのウェアハウス [2], with two of the floors being themed as KWC. The weathering on all the elements (including the escalator and crane games!) was fantastic.
Kowloon isn't the name of the Walled City, Kowloon is where the Walled City was located.
You can still visit Kowloon even today.
Only showing a tiny part and auto-scrolling at a fixed non-user controlled speed is an annoying choice.
Maybe there's some newer versions to check out?
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