Going into Victor Choi’s antique shop “Dragon Culture” on Hollywood Road (77 New Asia) is like entering a kaleidoscope. Although many of the objects in the store are over a thousand years old, they are nevertheless absolutely exquisite. The atmosphere is much more intimate than the well-guarded precincts of a museum, and well-trained staff give you a detailed introduction to the background of each cultural artifact, things which you can handle without the inconvenience of a vitrine. Victor Choi has loved to collect since childhood; tram tickets, cigarette boxes and stamps were all pressed into service. Later on, he collected Chinese antiques including “The Scholar’s Four Treasures”, terracotta figurines, porcelain, sculpture, bronze Buddhas, gold and silver inlay, and ancient jades. Although collecting was inherent in his nature, Victor told us that this interest was reinforced by the endless enjoyment which it has afforded him. “Every object has its own intrinsic quality; admiring its beauty and coming to an understanding of its historical background gives me a sense of tranquility and fulfillment.” This tranquility arises from the fact that one can leave behind the struggles and the intrigues of the marketplace and get away from personal and political concerns when in communion with a work of art. “Moreover, research into the historical and cultural significance of an artifact and the basis of its aesthetic merit is a kind of challenge. To gather together the results of one’s study and to organise this into a publishable whole is a further source of satisfaction and gives one a great sense of achievement.”

To raise awareness of ancient Chinese art and culture

Dragon Culture has a slogan: “We not only bring you authentic Chinese antiques, but also history and culture”. In order to further promote the “culture of the dragon”, Victor Choi has just published a beginner’s book on collecting antiques: “Collecting Chinese Antiques in Hong Kong”. In it, not only does he provide information on how to avoid buying fakes, how to start a collection, and how to determine the value of a work of art, he also gives readers an idea of what is collectible within each period through the agency of more than 200 color photographs. Victor is also in the process of putting out two specialist books advocating Chinese culture. One of these is a work on terracotta horses which our alumnus Mr. Choi has collected over the last six years. It presents 110 pieces dating from the Western Han to the Ming dynasties, and is the first book in the world to give a detailed account of Chinese terracotta horses. “Chinese culture has a history spanning several thousand years. Understanding this historical background will allow an even greater enjoyment in the appreciation of China’s ancient artifacts. Recently, I have donated over a hundred historical works to the Center for cross-cultural Studies in the City University. These include more than ten tablets with engravings in the ancient Indian language. Dr. Liang Yan Chung, and Professor Lin Mei Tsun of Peking University have agreed to write monographs concerning these works. This will give more people the opportunity to come into contact with and derive a greater understanding of these things.”

Mr. Choi has just created a website www.dragonculture.com.hk, which presents a distillation of his many years’ knowledge and experience of antiques. “The internet is a really great invention. Compared to the insignificance of the individual, the art and culture of China is vast as the oceans. I would not be able to do it justice were I to spend the energies of a lifetime. However, in establishing a website, I can share my knowledge and experience of collecting with everyone. Moreover, new information can be added at any time, and those who carry on after me will be able to build on this foundation. To encounter fellow travelers through this medium who share my interest in collecting antiques would be one of the great pleasures of life.” This website has been acknowledged by many authorities and others in the profession to be the most comprehensive and the best English language website on the subject of Chinese antiques. He expressed the hope that many more people will come to know and to experience the love of antiques through the catalytic effect of this website, maybe even to awaken their interest in collecting. Mr. Choi also hopes that this website will become a platform for scholars in various fields to come together in order to examine and write on the historical background of cultural antiquities, and in so doing, to expand the world of appreciation of ancient art.

Selling antiques to those who know how to appreciate them

“When I go hunting for antiques in China, it makes me so sad when, oftentimes, I see these things wondering “homeless” from place to place, and even subjected to thoughtless mistreatment. Meeting someone willing to reach into his wallet in order to acquire these works of art is like finding a home for them. I, on my part, also gain from this transaction in that I am enabled to give shelter to even more artifacts, and have the wherewithal to continue publishing various literatures in order to raise awareness of Chinese art and culture. Although most customers come from abroad, this is due in part to their greater consciousness of the need to protect artistic heritage. However, I believe that there will come a day, when China is wealthier, and the standard of living of her people has improved, that antiquities will flow back into the hands of the Chinese.”

It came as a surprise to us that Mr. Choi was already going into the mainland to hunt for antiques during his university days. He is most sentimental regarding those train journeys through numerous counties and provinces, journeys full of a quality of limitless freedom. With his many years of collecting experience, he is of the same opinion as our alumnus Mr. Wu Ji Yuan when he advises first time collectors to consider their true preference rather than the material worth of an antique in making a purchase. “The value of an ancient artifact is just a question of market supply and demand, something that can be manipulated. Therefore, in collecting antiques, one ought to take one’s own preferences as a starting point. It is very important to nurture one’s aesthetic sensibility.” Today, Mr. Choi expends all his energies looking after his two antique shops (in addition to another in New York whose daily affairs are overseen by his younger sister), turning his interest into his career. He rejoices in being able to do something that he loves, living in daily contact with wonderful works of art. “This is really the greatest joy in life.”