Old Haw Par Mansion built by famous Tiger Balm Fortune
1930s Chinese Styled Haw Par Mansion
Haw Par Mansion landmark
Haw Par Mansion is inextricably linked with Tiger Balm, a topical medication famous throughout Southeast Asia. With ingredients such as camphor, cajuput oil, clove oil and menthol, this soothing balm eased the physical stress of many generations.
Its regional success raised its creators, brothers Aw Boom Haw and Aw Boom Par, to prestigious positions in Southeast Asian society.
Related Kom Tong Hall museum honour China hero Dr Sun Yat-sen
Additionally, the brothers contributed to the architectural landscape of the two cities they established themselves in, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Cultural and heritage site
Of these, Haw Par Mansion, located in Hong Kong’s Mid-Level district, is a unique 1930s landmark surrounded by high-rises on either side.
Related Tian Tan Big Buddha bronze statue a colossal gift for people of faith
While much of the original property has been turned into residential complexes, the mansion is now a cultural and heritage site that also serves as a cross-cultural music school.
Who were these brothers that used their skills and background to create a medicinal dynasty? To understand this, we need to look back in time, to Myanmar in the mid-nineteenth century.
Related Rosanna Li ceramic sculptures rotund and joyful appearance
A Hakka originating from the Fujian province of China, Aw Chi Kim had settled in Myanmar’s capital city, Rangoon, in the 1860s. Here he met and married a local woman named Lee Kim Pek.
Fortune started from herbal shop
Aw Chi Kim established a small herbal shop called Eng Aun Tong (“Hall of Everlasting Peace”). The couple bore three sons – Boon Leung (“cultured dragon”), who died before reaching adulthood, Boon Haw (“cultured tiger”) and Boon Par (“cultured leopard”).
Related Surrender of the mind at Tang dynasty styled Nan Lian Garden
The two remaining sons were well-educated. Boon Haw attended Chinese schools, and after completing his formal education in Yongding, he returned to his home city. Boon Par went further with his studies.
Boon brothers
Receiving an education in Burma, the youngest son became fully trilingual in Chinese, English and Burmese. The sons learned much from their father.
Related Burma to Myanmar Art and Power of Creativity
Following their father’s death, the brothers inherited the herbal shop. Eager to continue and expand the business, Boon Haw re-established connections with his father’s suppliers and studied the advertising methods utilized in places such as Thailand, Hong Kong and Japan..
Tiger Balm brand
His market research led to the creation of the infamous Tiger Balm image – a tiger prepared to pounce, jaw wide open and paws extended to signify stamina and potency.
Related Amazing Auspicious Potent Dragon
When the brothers moved their headquarters to Singapore, they diversified their business portfolio. In 1929, they launched the Sin Chew Jit Poh newspaper in Singapore.
Six years after establishing a production facility in the port city of Hong Kong, they also launched the Sing Tao Daily there.
Related Vintage photos of Victoria Harbour and old Hong Kong
By expanding into the print business, they had ensured easy advertising space for their products and were able to target mercantile communities throughout the southeast.
Haw Par Mansion one of many
Ever industrious, the brothers also ventured into banking, rubber production and real estate.
Their successes were physically represented in mansions the brothers had built in Singapore, Hong Kong and Fujian.
The private estates in Singapore and Hong Kong included the creation of theme parks. Open to the public, these spaces were designed to promote traditional Chinese values.
Related Kowloon Walled City Park Memorial to City of Darkness
This stemmed from Boon Haw’s concerns that ethnic Chinese residents of these two cities – British colonies at the time – were losing touch with their cultural identity.
As such, the intention of the parks was to promote Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian morality, all the while promoting the product that made their family fortune.
Related Sanctuary and Lush Gardens at Wong Tai Sin Temple
The Hong Kong estate, Haw Par Mansion (named after the two brothers), was constructed for Boon Haw’s second wife, Tan Kyi Kyi.
Tai Hang Road
Preferring this city for its cosmopolitan atmosphere and more moderate climate, Boon Haw purchased a lot on the steep rocky climes of Tai Hang Road and built a residence for her.
Related Dragon Lodge Fascinating Haunted supernatural energy
The private estate was an architectural marvel. Built in the Chinese Renaissance style, the property incorporated a blend of Western and Chinese construction methods and architectural theory.
From the 1920s to 1960s, Chinese Renaissance architecture was a popular style in Hong Kong. This design utilized Chinese motifs onto a western architectural foundation.
Related Pak Tai Temple monument to people of faith and spirituality
The mansion now stands as one of the few surviving specimens of Chinese eclectic style architecture in Hong Kong. The house, completed in1936, sits on a private garden that spans eight acres of land.
Western architectural symmetry can be seen through the inclusion of porches, bay windows and fireplaces. The interior is stunningly decorated with stained glass windows originating from Italy.
Related Treasures from the Forbidden City and Palace of Versailles
These seamlessly match the carvings and moldings that decorate the high-ceilinged foyer, alongside gilded gold and murals that show Indian and Burmese influence.
A moon-gate inspired door greeted visitors in the original entrance, which was converted into a display space.
Parquet wood floors and intricate polished wood furniture welcomed dignitaries and visitors into the original main hall – now a piano room.
Tiger Balm Garden
The private grounds are located in front of the mansion. A western garden with plants from this region, the space is a perfect balance of nature and design.
Related Rare Hong Kong trees make life a joy in the city
The adjoining public space, named the Tiger Balm Garden, originally housed an eight-storey-tall pagoda that was part of Hong Kong’s tourism adverts in the 1980s.
After the surviving family member, adopted daughter Sally Aw, lost the family fortune during the 1998 Asian financial crisis, Haw Par Mansion and Tiger Balm Garden was sold to Li-Ka Shing’s property company, Cheung Kong.
Related Lantau Island’s Remarkable Visionary Secret Garden
While the mansion and private garden were preserved and passed to the government in 2001, the public garden was demolished in 2004 and redeveloped into residential complexes.
In 2009, the private property was accredited with a Grade 1 Historic Building status. With the combined efforts of the government’s historic building revitalizing scheme, Aw Boon Haw Foundation and Haw Par Music Foundation Ltd, the estate was converted from Haw Par Mansion into Haw Par Music.
Related Live fearless Hong Kong Music
As a meeting point for cross-cultural musical exchange, heritage and arts, Haw Par Music combines the artistic merits of music and history, translating these values into education and arts programmes for the Hong Kong community.
To meet the needs of these goals, acoustic panels were added into the mansion while restoring the external walls and decorations to their original 1930s look. With fifteen rooms in total, there was a lot of patience involved with finding the perfect room for each distinct sound.
Related Chinese Reverse Glass Painting from the Mei Lin Collection
Sheryl Lee, Executive Director of Program ming at Haw Par Music, said “One small thing can affect [the] acoustics and the artist.” And there are lots of styles to take into consideration.
As a “juxtaposition between east and west”, all genres exist under one roof. Haw Par Music holds the proud title of being Asia’s first music academy simultaneously dedicated to Chinese and Western chamber music studies and situated in a heritage building.
Related Hoo Mojong trailblazing Chinese female artist bridged East and West
Not just catering to classical Chinese music, the school is a place where cross-cultural communication through the arts is encouraged and actively pursued.
For students and teachers of Haw Par Music, the arts are a way of reaching out to the wider community. All students are expected to join social programmes alongside their drive for artistic excellence through the practice of music.
Related Jubilant Childhood shown in Chinese Ceramics
One such programme is “Chamber Scramble”. A high-level project, the initiative invites trained musicians of all ages to enjoy the “universal language” of music. In this way, skilled players the ages of eighteen and above have the special opportunity to learn from and enjoy music with a generation far removed from their own.
For the elderly especially, this practice enlivens many memories and boosts their self-confidence. Other social and musical programmes run by Haw Par Music involve musical practitioners, occupational therapy through different NGOs, integrated music and wellness sessions, and short-term programmes on music technology and production.
Related Twentieth-Century Chinese Oil Paintings Across Time and Space
To all students of this unique location, Sheryl said, “We’re able to curate a sense of worship, musicians having a second home… all our students prefer to come here for lessons. They feel safe; the rooms are very large, very peaceful.
The environment is very conducive for any sort of learning, [and] people in general feel a lot more zen.” Many performances held onsite showcase local artists that might not otherwise be able to let their voices be heard.
Related Imperial portraits of luxurious life of Qing Emperors and Empresses
In a space such as Haw Par Music, external collaborations are encouraged and celebrated. Even in a world as uncertain as ours, the school has found ways to keep the music going. Halting all group classes, individual lessons continue on site.
“Music is intangible,” Sheryl explained. “[we] had to overcome, ‘how do we create [in this new situation]?’” Much more work was involved behind the scenes than ever before, an unexpected challenge that the entire staff have handled brilliantly.
Related Bronze Zodiac sculptures survived destruction of Old Summer Palace
“The teachers are really supportive. Getting everyone onboard, [they take a] holistic [approach and] want to engage creativity.” And in working harder than ever, the team at Haw Par Music have become much closer.
With the combined efforts of an internationally recognized faculty, many continue to enquire into enrollment at the music school.
Moving forward, the school will approach challenges as they approach musical pieces – in Sheryl’s words, “[we] have to play it by ear, be flexible and adapt.”
Text & Photos Victoria Mae Martyn
