Hysan launches 'gLEEful rooftop' project to bond community

Hysan has partnered with One Bite Design Studio for “gLEEful rooftop” project to recreate children's games at Lee Gardens in Causeway Bay. The project aims to turn the fifth façade into a new city perspective. According to the press statement, Hysan is focused on bonding and connecting with the local communities, exploring possibilities and promoting sustainability. 

Hysan said the revitalisation of the eight rooftops will inspire more possibilities and promote sustainability in the Lee Gardens community. A series of events and programs such as music shows, sports and exercise workshops, mindfulness and meditation activities, community photography, arts and cultural events will also be held. The eight rooftops will demonstrate the fusion of old and new with the worthy aim of passing down the city’s unique rooftop culture and encouraging diversity. Local community members were engaged via a survey to voice their ideas and thoughts at the beginning stage of the project. A giant QR code linking to the survey was displayed on one of the eight revitalised rooftops to encourage participation. 

“Placemaking is the blending of architecture and design into a community, which can be achieved by exploring the different possibilities of communal space and connecting the space with community members, who are not only stakeholders but also an important source of ideas. If you want to come up with a design that the community can identify with, first, you need to understand its people,” said Alan Cheung, architect in charge of the project.

“People rarely think about using the roof space – the fifth façade – which can be turned into a nice city space if used smartly and creatively,” Cheung added, rooftops are more than a communal space but a place where memories are made, where interaction happens between human and architecture, and where culture is passed down from generation to generation. 

Themed “kids fun”, gLEEful rooftop captivates the community with the childhood games they grew up playing, such as: “Hopscotch”, “Red Light, Green Light”, “Wall Art”, “What’s the Time Mr. Wolf, “Hawks Catching Chickens”(a local tag game), paper planes, plastic soccer balls, and more. 

“Childhood games from different times are recreated on the rooftops. We use playful and colourful designs to appeal to the young, while the games would spark memories of those young at heart. They would feel they truly belong to the community through these artistic interactions,” Cheung explained. The project not only adds an artistic ambience but also a further layer of diversity to the community, encouraging members to use roof space as a “bridge” to connect people of all ages and walks of life.

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