Six arts of old find new life in Tai Hang

Wesley Village Hostel in Tai Hang is expected to be transformed into an arts institute early next year to promote traditional Chinese culture.

It is understood the hostel was the inspiration behind late author Ni Kuang's famous adventure-science fiction novels in the Wisely series.

According to an application filed with the Town Planning Board this month, the Six Arts Foundation, an education company, applied for a short-term tenancy grant of five years to transform the hostel into a 977-square-meter Six Arts Academy.

"The premise is primarily to serve as a venue for conducting workshops, classes, seminars to facilitate the learning and understanding of the six arts of rites, music, archery, chariotry (control of skills), calligraphy and mathematics through, but not limited, to traditional arts and knowledge," it said in the application.

Currently, the hostel with its four blocks stretches over 1,735 sq m on a vacant government site that is on a green belt.

The foundation said block A of its new Six Arts Academy will have two stories, with activity rooms to hold chess classes, including Chinese chess, Go and Shogi, which is Japanese chess.

It will also hold art classes to teach students Chinese ink painting, calligraphy and flower arrangment. Students can also learn about the traditional Chinese instrument guqin and archery.

At the academy's three-story block B, students can learn cookery, hosting tea ceremonies and flower arrangement.

The two-story block C will hold martial arts classes including wushu, Japanese kendo, karate and kyudo, Korean taekwondo as well as fencing.

Founding members of the foundation are said to have come from diverse backgrounds, including university professors, architects and even the coach for the Hong Kong kendo team.

The foundation said it aims to "establish and improve an individual's discipline, respect to oneself and to others, etiquette, empathy, self-enhancement, psychological strength, intellectual ability and physical fitness."

The new academy also hopes to help nurture talents from a young age.

"The six arts can connect people of different ages through the activities, provide opportunities for the young to take care of the elderly and the elderly to share their valuable experience and values with the young," it said.

The foundation added that it will invite mainland and overseas experts to run workshops, which could help Hong Kong become an "east meets west center for international cultural exchange."

It found the Wesley Hostel to be the most suitable location for its operation as its current layout is suitable for the future classes and workshops.

The hostel is also accessible by public transport and is close to schools, it said.