K11 – The New Brand
Yesterday, I attended the grand opening of K11 Art Mall, and was thankful to receive lots of comments and compliments about the mall. Many industry friends were interested in the birth, concept and vision of the K11 brand, and let me share them with you here.
The mission of K11 to remind people to respect the beauty of art, rethink human heritage, love the nature, rediscover the truth of life and redefine freedom. When we designed the brand, the K11 team and I were eager to bring art into everyday life and promote art among the locals and tourists through an Art Mall so that the two elements can merge seamlessly. There is a “Kollection” featuring 13 renowned artists including Danny Lee, Man Fung Yi, Kum Chi Keung and others. We wish their unique artworks made of different materials can unleash people’s imagination, create room for quiet quality time and pass on positive messages, making a difference to people’s lives. We are keen on bringing local artists and young talents together through various exchanges and residence programmes, and creating opportunities to share their works publicly in order to stimulate the interest of the general public in art and help promote the development of art in Hong Kong. We believe K11 will become a new local cultural hub and landmark.
The K11 team believes that with its prime location of Hong Kong, the Art Mall is still deeply rooted in the rich local culture, and is a part of its original neighborhood. We believe the rise of K11 can bring new changes to the multicultural community, revitalize the community to a flourishing place for gatherings, represent the ever-changing world and people’s innovation, and improve living standard.
We understand that nature nurtures people and supports our lives. We wish to awaken everyone to bear their thoughts on environmental protection, and live peacefully with the nature. K11 Art Mall features more than 100 plant installations coming from different parts of the world. At the cozy paved piazza, the public cultural space, there are always natural elements and wild bird songs, allowing people to dwell in an oasis and encouraging them to have a more frequent and closer dialogue with the nature.
As we designed the business model of K11, we decided to introduce “high energy retail” in the hope to provide consumers with a different sensational experience. As they admire the Kollection, indulge in the green paradise, and wander through concept shops and restaurants, they can enjoy their leisure time and have a genuine taste of the city’s new concepts about life.
The K11 brand inclines towards the relationship among art, people and nature, and reveals the interactive cycle of the three elements. Earth – “Nature”, which nurtures Wood – “People” and reminds us that nature nurtures people and people should reconnect with nature. Wood sparkles Fire – “Art”, which acts as a window into human heritage and reality and brings about quality life. Art itself is a form of energy offering unlimited energy harbouring inside nature. These three elements influence one another and form an endless cycle.
K11 announces its grand opening today, and it is the fruit of all our hard work. I am truly thankful to the K11 team for progressing through different stages with me with their creativity and efforts since the launch of the brand. To me, K11 is not merely another mall. Instead, it is a new global brand concept which starts in Hong Kong, and will grow across China and gradually step onto the world stage.
To me, the beauty of life lies in love, nature and arts. After years of planning and development, I and my team have established K11 in Hong Kong, with the vision of Art ‧ People ‧ Nature, to be opened by the end of 2009. I wish to share with you the perfect blending of art appreciation, humanistic experience, nature enjoyment and shopping.