Kowloon Walled City

April 24, 2014 3:45 PM

The Kowloon Walled City was once the most densely populated place on earth, a teeming hive of interlinking high-rises that few dared to enter but 33,000 people called home. Meet the people. Get lost exploring the alleyways. Learn the history.
posted by pravit (19 comments total)

the classic but long out of print photobook was successfully kickstarted for a reprint with new content last week
posted by p3on at 4:09 PM on April 24, 2014 [3 favorites]

Oh, dammit! I've wanted that book for ages but did not know about the kickstarter.
posted by tavella at 4:16 PM on April 24, 2014

Previously (Daily Mail photo gallery)

Previouslier (cross-section illustration, German documentary),

Previousliest (404 links, images embedded in discussion etc.).
posted by Aiwen at 4:44 PM on April 24, 2014

Visit the theme arcade.
posted by mwhybark at 4:47 PM on April 24, 2014

Vice Motherboard on the book project and the place.
posted by mwhybark at 4:49 PM on April 24, 2014

Giant Japanese illo, context.

(recently scored a 48" color inkjet roll printer on CL, I would say that's a candidate for a test print)
posted by mwhybark at 4:51 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]

When Warren Spector talks about making a game called One City Block I kind of assume this is what he has in mind.
posted by LogicalDash at 4:55 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]

I stumbled upon the is high-res scan of a map on Flickr a while back. No idea where it's from, but it looks like it was used in the layout of the first site in the post. I've been fascinated with Kowloon since the moment I saw that.

(On preview, mwhybark seems to have found it elsewhere)
posted by Devils Rancher at 5:03 PM on April 24, 2014

Very cool, thanks.
posted by Divine_Wino at 5:23 PM on April 24, 2014

Kowloon Walled City (the band) is noted on the Imagination page of the WSJ site. And they are goddamn awesome. The Pressure Keeps Me Alive
posted by Existential Dread at 5:30 PM on April 24, 2014 [1 favorite]

Cooooooool.
posted by brundlefly at 5:58 PM on April 24, 2014

"Just give us your details as a record that nothing happened." Those pesky cops are everywhere.
posted by Xurando at 6:09 PM on April 24, 2014

The "Play time" video (exploring the alleyways -> TAKE A WALK -> lower-left-hand-most video) has a child on a tricycle speeding down a hall (not as thin a hall as I would've expected) like something straight out of The Shining.
posted by blueberry at 9:07 PM on April 24, 2014

That book (which I found in a great bookstore in Hong Kong) is one of my favorite things. I love to leaf through it. The Walled City is on my list of things I would have liked to have visited, had I known/had the chance.
posted by Ghidorah at 3:37 AM on April 25, 2014

My only experience with Kowloon is Shenmue. But the hold it has on my imagination is great...maybe because of Shenmue.
posted by The Hyacinth Girl at 8:17 AM on April 25, 2014

Oh, dammit! I've wanted that book for ages but did not know about the kickstarter.

Apparently from now until mid-July, you can order City of Darkness: Revisited directly from the authors for the same price that Kickstarter backers got it for.

I backed it on Kickstarter, and can't wait for it to arrive. I've been fascinated by the Walled City for a long time (probably came with my love of the cyberpunk genre). I wish I could have visited.
posted by good in a vacuum at 10:26 AM on April 25, 2014

the classic but long out of print photobook was successfully kickstarted for a reprint with new content last week

Ahhhhh amazing! Thank you for the link, so excited it will get a reprint. That has been on my wishlist for ages.
posted by Theta States at 10:35 AM on April 25, 2014

Great post pravit! Just my cup of chai!
posted by nickyskye at 10:36 AM on April 25, 2014

I wish I could get a PDF of the book. I can't justify the Kickstarter price.
posted by caphector at 9:44 PM on April 25, 2014