By Dega Sian Rutherford
“A photograph taken on 12th August 2019 in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.”
Dega Sian Rutherford is a postgraduate researcher in the College of Arts and Law
Almost 10 weeks after the beginning of the 2019 Hong Kong protest movement. It shows one of the territory's many 'Lennon Walls' - areas of the city adorned with post-it-notes conveying messages of hope, support, anger and desperation. Hong Kong Lennon walls beautifully exemplify how everyday spaces can become politicised and transform into sites of defiance, which champion freedom and showcase resistance.
My PhD pioneers the concept ‘displayification’ to describe how ideology can be imagined and rendered visible through ornamental inscription, symbolic display and performance. 'Lennon Walls' are ornaments of protest.