Hong Kong Design Centre bridges design and community culture

The Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) has introduced a comprehensive brand campaign for the DX design hub entitled "Great design lives here," anchored by the central theme "Step into Sham Shui Po to discover great design".

Through an integrated blend of online and offline media initiatives, the campaign invites the general public to explore the historically rich and culturally vibrant creative community of Sham Shui Po. Within the dedicated spaces of the DX design hub, visitors are encouraged to actively experience, seek, touch, and connect through design, ultimately uncovering the profound ways in which design weaves together local culture, neighborhood communities, and everyday urban life.

As a centrepiece of its seasonal programming, the DX design hub is presenting "DX Aquatic Summer," a festive seasonal initiative featuring ocean-inspired artistic installations, interactive digital experiences, and hands-on creative workshops. Set within highly immersive visual environments characterised by refreshing, cool colour palettes, this seasonal showcase is intentionally curated to encourage visitors to unleash their personal imagination and creative potential.

The overarching campaign emphasises the diverse, inspiring array of design experiences and carefully curated educational programmes hosted at the venue, serving as an open invitation for residents to visit Sham Shui Po and witness firsthand the practical intersections of community identity and design.

Rainy Chan, executive director of Hong Kong Design Centre, said, ‘”Great design lives here” is more than a brand message, it is an invitation. We hope people will discover that great design has always been part of our city and everyday lives — something that is all around us and within everyone’s reach. Through DX design hub as a creative platform, we aim to connect design with communities, culture and everyday experiences."

"Sham Shui Po has long been a district rich in creativity and cultural heritage. We warmly invite both residents and tourists to experience DX design hub and embark on a diverse journey of discovery, exploring the inspiration and possibilities that design can bring to everyday life," Chan added. 

The new brand campaign is built around four key pillars — ‘Connect design’, ‘Experience design’, ‘Touch design’, and ‘Seek design’. Through advertisements across the MTR and bus network, including lightboxes, digital screens, selected platform pillar posters, as well as bus body and seat-back stickers, the campaign brings ‘Great design lives here’ into everyone’s daily journeys.

The campaign aims to inspire people to step into Sham Shui Po and embark on their own journey of design discovery. Visitors can also scan QR codes and complete simple tasks to redeem limited-edition souvenirs, adding an element of surprise and engagement to their design exploration.

For the duration of the summer season, the physical spaces of the DX design hub have been completely transformed by the thematic "DX Aquatic Summer" architecture. Elaborate, candy-coloured coral structures and suspended jellyfish installations fill the corners of the venue, successfully establishing a vibrant, cooling oceanic atmosphere designed for an immersive seasonal experience.

Running from the present date through 31August, the public programme also integrates a brand-new digital interactive feature. Visitors can scan localised QR codes to access the specialised "Deep sea discovery" mobile webpage and initiate a digital exploration mission.

By searching for hidden QR codes embedded within the physical ocean-themed installations and virtually "capturing" various marine creatures along their route, participants gain the opportunity to operate an on-site capsule toy machine to receive surprise gifts.

To further engage families during the summer school holidays, the DX design hub has organised an extensive roster of creative public workshops. The diverse schedule spans contemporary design projects—such as ocean-themed paper art hanging decorations, glass dome night lights, bubble mirrors, sea glass painting, traditional cloisonné craftsmanship, UV resin modeling, and custom leather coral Bolo Ties—alongside localised heritage craft workshops dedicated to the preservation of traditional bamboo weaving and palm-leaf fan making.

These curated workshops are structured to offer an ideal multi-generational or parent-child activity, providing a creative space to cool off from the summer heat and spend quality time together.

These temporary summer features complement the hub's ongoing foundational programming, which includes the large-scale spatial installation "Node…Node" and the interactive exhibition "Digital Emotions - From Electric Pulse to Human Touch," an exploration of the nuanced relationship between modern technology and human emotion.

Looking toward the coming weeks, the DX design hub is scheduled to premiere three additional major exhibitions designed to deepen its community ties. The first is "Fading out/in: Designed to remember," a culture and heritage preservation exhibition launching on 29 July. This will be followed on 6 August by "Meow-cation," a unique community-driven showcase, and subsequently on 14 August by "Browse and found in Sham Shui Po," an immersive exhibition specifically exploring historical everyday objects and local neighborhood archives.

Through this robust, diverse mix of public exhibitions and community-anchored initiatives, the DX design hub continues to operate as a vital regional bridge for creativity, encouraging the public to discover the immediate relevance and depth of contemporary design culture.

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to HKDC for more information. 

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