“Lui Seng Chun’s curved facade whispers tales of the past” Don’t you agree? Before you stands Lui Seng Chun a Grade I Historic Building in Mong Kok. It’s more than just a building. It’s a living testament to a family’s legacy a piece of Hong Kong’s history.
Lui Seng Chun was built in 1931 for Lui Leung a businessman who co-founded the Kowloon Motor Bus Company. His family ran a Chinese medicine shop on the ground floor. They lived upstairs. Imagine the life within these walls. The bustling shop below the quiet family life above. The scent of herbs the sounds of city life.
Lui Seng Chun is a four-story tong lau a traditional Chinese-style building. Architect W H Bourne designed it. It’s a blend of neoclassical and Art Deco styles. Note the sweeping horizontal lines and robust classical elements. See the curved design of the main front elevation? That was a clever solution to make the most of the triangular site. It’s a unique design for a building.
The Lui family donated Lui Seng Chun to the Hong Kong Government in 2003. This was an unprecedented act of generosity. They wanted to preserve their family heritage. Their hope was to share this building with future generations.
Today Lui Seng Chun houses the Hong Kong Baptist University School of Chinese Medicine. The revitalization project kept much of the original structure. You can still see the granite columns terrazzo walls and flooring tiles. The original staircase remains. It’s a beautiful example of how to preserve history while adapting a building for modern use.
In 2022 Lui Seng Chun was declared a monument. It stands as a symbol of a well-respected family’s history. It shows the economic activities of their Chinese medicine shop. It’s a captivating blend of the past and the present. A place where history heals and traditions continue. This is Lui Seng Chun. A building that breathes history.