THE ARCADES PROJECT 商場研究企劃

Strolling in shopping malls is undoubtedly one of the best holiday activities. You might enjoy the decorative installations in the malls, or get a holiday gift for your beloved ones. How enjoyable this experience is! Nonetheless, consumption might not be the only purpose of strolling in the malls. Walter Benjamin, a German philosopher, has an Arcades Project, which was an unfinished lifelong project, an enormous collection of writings on the city life of Paris in the 19th century, especially concerned with the iron-and-glass covered arcades. The shopping malls in Hong Kong nowadays are just like the arcades in Paris at that time. So, try to observe what is happening around when you are shopping in the malls next time, you might get new inspirations from that.

你或許會同意，逛商場是長假期的最佳消閒活動。的而且確，一邊欣賞商場的大型節日裝飾佈置，一邊為摯愛挑選心儀禮物，滿載而歸，許是消磨假日時光的好去處。不過，逛商場的目的未必僅限於消費，德國哲學家本雅明就曾在巴黎開展拱廊研究計劃，以旁觀者身份觀察拱廊裡出現發生的事物。當年巴黎的拱廊，地位、功能就如今天香港的商場，故此下次當你逛商場時，不妨也多留心商場這場所的種種，比如是，各大商場結構的共通之處。這麼，也許你能發現更多。