Design for Hong Kong: Henry Steiner

I made a visit to the HKDI Gallery exhibition of Henry Steiner, who designed HSBC logo, Standard Chartered Hong Kong bank notes, and even AmCham Hong Kong logo, among many other great things.

Born in Austria, Steiner was well educated at Yale University in New Haven before he moved to Asia where his designer career really took off, especially after some early success in Hong Kong, which he also calls home.

Hong Kong used to be a magnet for talents from all over the world, and I hope it will continue to be so. Many people came to Hong Kong initially for a short stint, which later became a longer assignment or eventually a lifetime thing.

Those who left Hong Kong often succeeded elsewhere. For them, Hong Kong was the best “stepping stone” they can ever find in their life and career. That’s what Hong Kong means for many successful people, and that’s how Hong Kong contributes to the world.

I’m really impressed by Steiner’s graphic design work, especially his work for HSBC, from the meaningful logo to the bank’s annual reports in the 1980s and 1990s. I’m not sure if we should blame technology or what. Does design software like Photoshop make us smarter or lazier?

I was thinking about the recent controversial event about Karen Mok’s childish concert poster. What goes wrong with Hong Kong these days? We need to get back the golden times of Hong Kong design, just like how much we want to keep growing our beloved Cantopop songs and culture.

香港人加油! Add oil, Hongkongers!