THE ARTS

Being Neighbourly Creativity Award 2024

Photographer Peter Sung scoops the prize with stunning series

Author/ Being Neighbourly
31 December 2024

And the ‘Being Neighbourly Creativity Award 2024’ goes to Peter Sung, a paramedic turned photographer, for whom photography started as a causal hobby many years ago — due to a sibling’s interest in the art form.

Sung’s nomination by Canon for professional photography training in Fukushima, Japan, was the first real recognition of his talent and, today, he says that photography is such a big part of his life that he can’t think of any other job he would rather be doing. From ideating and planning his shoots and hiking up mountains to get the optimum shot to the post-shoot editing component — Sung shares that he loves every aspect of photographic work.

Since his retirement from paramedic service in 2014, after 34 years of service, Sung has been commissioned by the Hong Kong China Tourism Press. His photographs have also graced the cover of the annual Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce magazine, The Bulletin; The International Travel Expo of Hong Kong (ITE Hong Kong); the Headquarters of the HKGFS; and the publication, China’s Greater Bay Area: Pearl River Delta; and more than 700 visitors to the Being Neighbourly art exhibition ‘Transitions’ from 21-25 November had the benefit of witnessing his skills up close.

A recurring theme in Sung’s work is the state of Hong Kong; namely, the rich-poor divide in the city and, in more recent years, the departure of residents from the territory. Sung told Being Neighbourly that he feels he is witnessing a transition in the spirit of the city as people leave — which he has felt compelled to capture with his lenses: abandoned cars, desolate public housing estates, and so forth.

This year, two of Sung’s photos were selected by National Geographic and ranked in their ‘Top 5’ and ‘Top 50’ lists of photographs, respectively — out of a phenomenal 10,000 nominations. One was a black and white of the cenotaph in front of The Hong Kong Club Building in Central, startlingly still and composed amid the city’s transitions; while the other was a colour shot depicting the life of fishermen in Yuen Long. Both are available on the Being Neighbourly online shop.

This November, Sung was unanimously voted the winner of the inaugural ‘Being Neighbourly Creativity Award 2024’ for his series of three photographs depicting ‘Transitions in Society’. The judging panel consisted of Bert Bulthuis, Founder and Principal architect of STUDIO SITEC, Ingrid Chen of FindArt App, and Pete Ross and Kyra Campbell of HK Arts Collective who all agreed that Sung’s series highlighting the gap between rich and poor was topical subject and well-deserving of the attention of the ‘Transitions’ audience. They shared that their decision had been based on the alignment of the series with the overarching ‘Transitions’ theme, the ‘Transitions in Society’ sub-theme, the complementary story-telling aspect each photograph had on the others; and, because all three photographs were of a uniformly high technical standard.

Being Neighbourly ‘Transitions’ sponsor and group member, Janey Rogers kindly donated Sung his prize — a collection of unisex Temple Spa products from the UK.

Congratulations to Sung for his win. Each awardee of the ‘Being Neighbourly Creativity Award’ will be invited to to judge the subsequent Being Neighbourly art exhibition, enriching the panel with their talent, expertise and experience.

Some of Peter Sung’s work is available for sale in the Being Neighbourly web shop.

Peter Sung