Grand Opening of K11 - The World’s First Art Mall in HK
Featuring HK Premiere of Lifestyle Brands & Over 20 International Cuisines
K11, the world's first art mall developed by New World Development Company Limited ( "NWD" or "the Group", Hong Kong stock code : 17) and the Urban Renewal Authority (URA), today celebrated its grand opening. The project, with a total investment of HK$ 3 billion, pioneers the blend of three essential elements: Art‧ People‧Nature. K11 appeals to the five senses and elevates shopping to a superb enjoyment. The grand opening celebration party will be held at the atrium of K11.
Located at 18 Hanoi Road TST, K11 is an art shopping mall with six storeys of 340,000 square feet total floor area, and connected to the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui and The Masterpiece, a building of contemporary-designed apartments. K11 has over 100,000 workforce and 10,000 hotel rooms nearby, and boasts HK Museum of Arts, HK Cultural Centre and HK Museum of History as its neighbors. Unique to this district is the fascinating blend of old and new and with K11 as the world's first Art Mall combining the three essential elements Art. People. Nature, the K11 District is going to become a core multi-cultural dimension in Hong Kong, much like the SOHO and Tribeca areas in the United States.
K11, through the interaction of Art, People, Nature, features the shifting of local culture, philosophy and the general public's lifestyle and characteristics. The selected art pieces in the mall are therefore mainly chosen from local artists' creations. All of the "K11 Kollection" 13-set masterpieces, valued at over HK$ 20 million, were carefully selected by K11 Founder and Chairman Mr Adrian Cheng. The collection, with a rich presentation exploring the relationship between humans and nature, comprises mainly sculptures and installation artworks - a match with K11's seeking for natural harmony. The mall, being the first to launch an iphone instant tour guide service, enables the public to learn more about the artists and how the masterpieces were produced through an interactive means.
New Shopping Experience at Art Mall:HIKING ARTE
For the support of local artistic creativity and to provide room for communication between artists and the public, K11 has designed 18 showcases and placed them on every level of the mall. Today, the opening of the first activity HIKING ARTE, eight local artists - curator Leung Chin Fung Jeff and other 7 local artists, namely Eastman Cheng, Chu Hing Wa, Lam Tung Pang, Lau Hok Shing Hanison, Tang Kwok Hi, Shirley Tse and Wong Chun Hei, present more than 20 installation, photography and painting art pieces. All these modern landscape masterpieces are themed with human and nature, the audience will find themselves feeling the essence and freshness of mountains and waters despite being indoors.
Mr Cheng points out,"K11, an expression of virtual world and reality, intertwines the functions of shopping malls and art galleries. Art pieces are displayed in the showcases placed in between shops in the mall, for the shoppers to appreciate local art creations and enjoy shopping like "artistic shopping experience"."
Shopping at more than 100 trendy concept stores
K11 features the world's trendy brands, 65% of the shops are flagship stores and coming to Hong Kong for the first time. To name a few of those: the first Chow Tak Fook global concept store occupies a space of more than 5000 sq ft, whereas the stylish sports boutique MiXTRA engages more than 20,000 sq ft. Market Place by Jasons Supermarket flagship store offers more than 100 different kinds of beers, and Spanish professional skincare brand AINHOA. The 30,000 sq ft lifestyle zone at basement level showcases numerous quality international brands, allowing the shoppers to experience a unique shopping experience.
Exceeding 20 International Cuisines
Gourmet Tower brings together more than 20 international cuisines, such as Aropa, the first Solomon restaurant in Hong Kong; Espressamente illy, renowned Italian coffee brand illy's first Hong Kong flagship store; Hama Japanese Cuisine, an high-end Japanese restaurant famous for its rare sake collections and Ginza Bairin, a specialist in pork cutlet with an 82-year history in Japan. All these restaurants are known for their new and innovative elements and authentic ingredients. The hip and comfy atmosphere creates an arty dining experience for the guests, making K11 the hottest dining spot in TST.
An Urban Oasis
The Piazza of K11, designed in a European garden square style with several hundred trees planted, is dedicated to creating an indoor urban oasis. With natural light penetrating through the glass ceiling and soft music of the natural world running, the 36m wide giant curve wall screen shows non-stop nature related movies. The 11.8m high indoor waterfall and over a hundred maple trees, matching with the "K11 Kollection" creates an ideal retreat.
Founder and Chairman Mr Cheng, will start the solemn opening ceremony with Managing Director of New World Development Dr Henry Cheng Kar Shun, New World Development Executive Director Mr Stewart Leung Chi Kin and representatives of Urban Renewal Authority.
The grand opening party, bringing out a European romantic atmosphere was created by the ingenious use of soft lighting, leads the audience to indulge themselves in a Parisian artistic world. Organ musicians, ballerinas, magicians and mime artists performed in various locations to amuse the visitors, further spicing up the party. K11 hosted a shopping carnival to demonstrate the wonderful vibes of mixing art and shopping, with the tenants offering discounts and gifts to the guests. Everyone had a good time and enjoyed a new, artistic shopping journey in a great environment with "Art, People, Nature" as the core elements.