As the Founding Head of the new Department of Art and Design, it is with honour, joy and excitement that I present this message to you, member of the community of Art and Design at the Hang Seng University of Hong Kong!

Not long after the University was retitled in 2018, the Five-year Strategic Plan from 2018-2023 was rolled out with the very first target to establish a new academic unit in Art and Design, a formidable task which I received to implement from the Senior Management, first with the design and successful accreditation of a BA in Art and Design programme in November 2019 and then, the fulfilment of establishing a new Department from 16 August 2020. Recently, a new MA in Cultural Heritage Management programme was launched from Academic Year 2023-2024, providing postgraduate education to nurture more industry professionals in the field of cultural conservation and heritage management.

This new Department is a culmination of my recruitment to the University since 2016 to design and create the first programme of its kind in Hong Kong, the BA in Cultural and Creative Industries, which is now under the Department together with the BA in Art and Design, and MA in Cultural Heritage Management, equally pioneering in its integration of art with technology and business in what is dubbed as Arts Tech as the key to unlock the future.

I am indeed grateful for the University’s trust and support to have created two undergraduate programmes, one master programme, and one department in a relatively short span of time, with the aspiring and noble ambitions to educate and nurture the future talents of Hong Kong with interdisciplinary, vibrant, creative, and forward-looking skills to become professionals in the art and design sectors of the cultural and creative economy, and with a socially responsible and caring attitude to contribute to our community.

I relish being part of this collective future and look forward to joining hands with you to realize and cherish this vision.

Desmond Hui

Professor and Founding Head

Department of Art and Design