(Photo from Website)
Red in color and traditional in design, the gate of Temple Street has the couplet written in Chinese calligraphy.
In fact, this is a production by Tam Tan, a vendor in the Temple Street.
Go straight to the central, on Pitch N. 127 of the street, there are lots of calligraphy works hanging on the wall, the creator of which is Tam Tan, a member of Hong Kong Association of Calligraphy. “I hope to spread Chinese culture by writing and selling Chinese calligraphy here,” Tam Tan said.
He went from Guangzhou to Hong Kong in his early 30s. After selling jeans in the Temple Street for more than 20 years, he decided to pursue his own hobby since he was young. “I want to combine working with entertainment,” Tam Tan said.
Now he has already reached his 60s, and he is still working on the Temple Street, although the thing he sells has changed.
“There are lots of foreigners here, so it is easier for me to promote Chinese calligraphy,” Tam Tan said.
According to Tam Tan, 60% of customers of his works are travelers from western countries, 20% are people from Singapore and Malaysia, and 20% are the locals in Hong Kong. “Western people have interested in Chinese culture, and mostly they want to see I write for them on the spot, because they cannot believe all the works are written by myself,” he added.
Unfortunately, the customers have been increasingly declining since the Umbrella Movement happened last year. “No one wants to travel to a place that is not peaceful,” he said.
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Benita Zhang 