Now & then
With 40 years of pictures to rummage through, it was a hard ask, but Kimberly Hu was up to the task. To mark our ruby anniversary, she selected a series of fun photographs from the archives and asked their subjects to help us recreate them. Here’s a photo
To mark Hong Kong Tatler’s 40th anniversary, we selected a series of photographs from the archives guaranteed to raise a smile and asked the subjects to help us recreate them. Take a photographic wander down memory lane—with a modern Tatler twist
LINDA & ISABELLA ting
2017 / 2004 the last time 13-year-old Isabella did a professional photo shoot was for her hong Kong tatler debut as a cute little 10-month-old on the november 2004 cover. “this is the first time I’ve ever worn fake eyelashes,” she giggles as she smiles for the cameras in the tatler studio. “the original picture was taken in our home. that table in the photo is long gone now,” says Linda. Grown-up Isabella channels her mother’s vibe beautifully, with the duo both in gorgeous Diane von Furstenberg dresses. “I was in a yellow DVF gown in the original shot and definitely wouldn’t want Isabella to be naked in this shot,” jokes Linda.
Johnny Chan
2017 / 2002 It was for a July 2002 feature on classic car collectors that Johnny first appeared in hong Kong tatler—alongside his 1969 Mercedes-benz 300 SEL 6.3. Fast-forward to today and things haven’t changed much: the businessman is still one of hong Kong’s biggest car buffs, with an ever-growing collection of vintage wheels. his garage boasts some of the rarest specimens, including a turquoise 1958 Chevrolet, a silver 1967 Mercedes-benz Pagoda 230 SL and a red 1984 Ferrari 308 GTS, but he still finds time to give his classic black beauty some love. “I try and take it out at least once a month for a drive, but there’s no air-conditioning so it’s a little tough driving it around in hong Kong’s summer heat. Unlike me, the car is in better condition today than it was back then.”
Bonnae Gokson & AMANDA BERAHA
2017 / 1993 “I’m pretty sure the photos were taken in my home at the time,” says Amanda of a September 1993 feature on pairs of best friends, which also included Daisy ho and Miriam Yao, and Kevin Chau and Patrick Chan. “we were asked to think of a concept for the photographer and Bonnae came up with the idea of us feeding each other cake. Little did we know that she would become the Queen of Cakes one day and that we’d be recreating this shot in one of her many shops.” the pair giggle as they feed each other slices of cake in Bonnae’s Pacific Place cafe-bar, C’est La B, for the recreation. “It doesn’t seem like that long ago that we took the original picture,” says Bonnae. “Individually, we’ve changed a lot, but our friendship is still as strong as ever.”
Johanna & MAXIMILIAN ARCULLI
2017 / 2004 Same house, same couch, but a much larger Maximilian, known to family and friends as Max. Sadly, the corgi, oliver, has died, but poodle Baloo was happy to step in for the shoot. “honestly, all I can remember from that photo was how I spent the whole time hoping that Max wouldn’t cry,” Johanna recalls of the April 1993 feature on motherhood. Jokes Max, “I’m pretty sure I was thinking about when I could next eat or take a nap. So, yeah, nothing much has changed there.”
JOSHUA, DANIEL & MICHAEL Green
2017 / 2004 the black-and-white father-son snap was sent in by the Greens for a June 2001 Father’s Day feature. “the photo was taken in a lovely rented house in tuscany, and the whole family was there with various boyfriends and girlfriends,” recalls Joshua. “I was living in new York at the time,” Daniel chimes in. “Josh had just moved back to hong Kong and my two sisters were in university in the UK. It was a lot of fun because we all got together for the summer.” Asked if they’ve changed much since the photo was taken, Daniel jokes, “there was definitely a bit more hair going on then.” one thing that has stayed the same is that the Greens still go on holiday together whenever they can. “Julie, my wife, always organises our family trips,” says Michael. “She rents a beautiful house and then suddenly everyone seems to make time to come.”
CECIL Chao
2017 / 1999 “I never actually smoked, but held the cigar as a prop,” says Cecil of his november 1999 cover shoot at Villa Cecil, his Pokfulam bachelor pad. eighteen years later, we’re back to recreate the shot—this time with a glass of whisky in hand. “Despite my party boy image, I actually don’t drink much either, just a little bit of wine,” he says. has he changed a lot since the original photo was taken? “on the outside, of course, but on the inside I haven’t changed at all. I still have the same amount of energy. the only difference is that these days I channel most of it towards work and exercise instead of partying.”
From Left to right: Vanessa
2017 / 2000 still youthful and ever so stylish, Vanessa, Viola and reyna have not aged one bit since hong Kong tatler’s may 2000 mother’s day feature. if you were to just look at them you’d think the recreated shot was done shortly after the original—except, of course, for the “babies,” who have multiplied and grown into young adults. spread out all over the world, some of the “kids” are now working (nadia and Kyara), some are in university (alexandra and Chloe) and some still in school in hong Kong (Christian, Victoria and naomi). But there’s still one thing they all have in common—they love their mothers, who did a great job of raising their broods.
FLORA Zeta Cheong-leen
2017 / 1978 It was a scorching 35 degrees Celsius outside when we met Flora for the recreation of her october 1978 fashion feature, yet the heat didn’t faze her one bit as she posed effortlessly in a fur coat and knee-high boots. “At the time of the original shoot, I used to be an in-house model for Siberian Fur Store. I was still a student and was back in hong Kong from england for the holidays. It was such a fun experience for me because I was really young and lived a simple lifestyle, so shooting in fur coats made me feel really elegant and sophisticated”—two things she has certainly become since that shoot.
Peter Cheung & CANDICE SUEN-SIEBER
2017 / 2005 “the original photo was for a dining out feature we did in 2005 when tatler used to get people to try out new restaurants around town,” says Candice. “this one was for a Korean restaurant called Kaya.” Peter chimes in, “I just remember a lot of steam coming out from the pot in front of us and feeling like I was getting a Korean soup facial.” twelve years down the track and Candice has her own restaurant, Ciao Chow—the site of our recreation. “I never imagined that Candice would become a big restaurateur herself,” Peter says, to which Candice responds, “I wouldn’t call myself a big restaurateur, but thanks for the compliment, Peter.” the pair may now have a grey hair or two and a wrinkle here and there, but their chemistry hasn’t changed one bit.