The Live in Tong Lau - Blue House
唐樓裏的生活 - 藍屋
About Blue House
Blue House is located at 72-74A Stone Nullah Lane, Wan Chai. Its original colour is grey just like other tenement buildings, later the exterior wall was painted blue in the 1990s because only the blue paint used by the Water Supplies Department remained in the stores during repairs by the Lands Department, which became an iconic feature and the building was named by it. As 74A was still private property at that time, the restoration project decided to leave unpainted grey colour on display. The Blue House, like many pre-war buildings, is a multi-functional building. It once provided Chinese medical services, post-war schooling, and served as the meeting place for the Fishmongers Chamber of Commerce. Its architectural structure and function were influenced by political, economic, and historical factors at that time.
藍屋的名稱由來和用途
藍屋位於灣仔石水渠裡72-74A號，其原色與其他唐樓一樣為灰色，因地政總署維修時店內只剩下水務署使用的藍色油漆，後於1990年代將外牆漆成藍色，成為標誌性特色並以其顏色命名。由於當時74A還是私有財產，決定保留未上漆的灰色。藍屋和許多戰前樓宇一樣為多用途建築，曾經提供華人醫療服務，戰後教育，以及作為魚販商會的會址，其建築結構與用途受當時政治、經濟和歷史因素影響。
Blue House in 1957
1957年的藍屋
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Combination of Chinese and Western Architectural Styles
Tong lau mainly appeared in cities of southern China and Southeast Asia area, it dominated Hong Kong between 1840-1960s due to Hong Kong's population growing rapidly, its material and structure integrating both Chinese and Western-style. Blue House was converted into a four-storey tenement building for both residential and commercial uses in 1922-1923. Its architectural features include traditional southern Chinese architectural features such as shophouse design, load-bearing brick walls, wooden floors and staircase, it also includes western Art Deco elements such as geometric patterned wrought iron banister and window lintel. Hong Kong's Tang lau design tends to be practical, Blue House has cantilevered balconies supported by wrought-iron columns with decorative wrought-iron balustrades, which provide an additional space externally for residents to do laundry.
融合中西建築風格
唐樓主要出現在華南及東南亞地區的城市，1840-1960年代因香港人口急速增長而於本地盛行。藍屋於1922-1923年改建為四層樓住宅及商業用途的唐樓，其建築特色既有中國南方傳統建築特色如前舖後居，承重磚牆，木造樓板及樓梯等; 也有西方藝術裝飾的元素如幾何圖案鐵藝欄杆和窗簷。香港的唐樓設計傾向以實用為主，像藍屋便設有懸臂式陽台由鐵柱支撐並裝有花式鐵欄杆，為住戶提供額外的戶外洗衣空間，可見當時人們在建築設計上對有限空間的運用。
Blue House after restoration
修復後的藍屋
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Preservation and Continuation of Community Culture
The balance between preservation and renovation of historical buildings has always been a knotty issue, how to preserve the existing architectural features, balance the needs of residents and public participation are aspects that need to be considered by the authority. Blue House tends to maintain its original appearance as possible, retain the existing use of the upper-level residential units and avoid major structural changes to the existing building, to minimise interference with the distinctive elements of the architectural style of the Blue House, for example, the wooden and brick structure only replaced if under serious damage, reference to the existing building elements to repairing and restoring wooden and brick structures to maintain their original appearance; considering the need of resident, basic facilities such as toilets and bathrooms were added and replace the dilapidated and unstable structure for safety reason. Also, the Installation and plumbing of building services facilities are located in a discreet location to minimise the impact on the appearance of the front facade of the Blue House, for example, adding lifts, fire-fighting facilities and a link bridge at the back of the open space area of the building only affect the rear external wall.
Besides the physical preservation, continuity of the meaning and function of the building is one of the purposes of rehabilitation. Blue House remains part of the space that opens to the public to help the public to understand the cultural value of Blue House and relive memories of the past of Hong Kong. Blue House invites social enterprises to move in and continue the living style of “shophouse”, establish “Community Classroom” provide experience of traditional living culture, set up exhibition area like the “Hong Kong House of Stories” and “Heritage Interpretation Area” to exhibit the household items and living environment to reveal the story of the grassroots and development of society. These projects encourage collective participation in the conservation model which is conducive to preserving the history and human network in the community and practising sustainable development.
保育與延續社區文化
歷史建築的保護和修繕之間的平衡一直是一個棘手的問題，當局需要考慮如何保留現有建築特色，同時平衡居民的需要和公眾的參與。藍屋的保育計畫傾向於盡量保持原貌，保留上層住宅單位的現有用途，避免對現有建築的結構進行大規模的改動，盡量減少對藍屋建築風格及特色元素的干預，例如：只在嚴重損壞的情況下更換木質與磚頭結構，並參照現有建築元素進行替換和修復以保持原貌；考慮居民需求，增加廁所和浴室等基本設施。同時在不影響藍屋正面外觀的影響下，增加符合現代化建築要求的設施，包括增設電梯供行動不便的居民使用，安裝消防設備及連接橋鼓勵用戶間的交流。
建築的意義和功能的延續也是保育的重要一環，藍屋預留部分空間開放予公眾，以推廣藍屋的文化價值和提供一個讓大眾了解及重溫舊香港的回憶。藍屋邀請社會企業進駐延續「前舖後居」的生活模式，開設「民間學堂」提供傳統生活文化的體驗；設立「香港故事館」與「舊物敘述空間」展出以往居民的生活用品和生活空間以了解基層市民的生活及社會的發展變遷。這些項目均鼓勵社會各界及區內居民在保育上的集體參與，有利於保存社區內的歷史和人脈網絡及實踐可持續發展。
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