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Led by architect and architectural historian Charles Lai, AONA is a Hong Kong-based consultancy dedicated to the revitalisation & conservation of heritage and the curation of cultural narratives.
From the meticulous revitalisation of historical structures to the spatial design of immersive exhibitions, we believe that architectural and cultural interventions can bring the past into the present with powerful resonance.
The Cha Chaan Teng Codex Exhibition
"The Cha Chaan Teng Codex - Tales of Invisible Designs 茶記百科- 看不到的設計學" moves beyond nostalgic imagery to explore the hidden historical contexts and design intelligence of Hong Kong’s iconic diners. Adopting a rigorous, research-based curatorial approach, the exhibition breaks from conventional formats and frame the Cha Chaan Teng as an intricate "design of systems". By uniting cross-disciplinary creators, including architects and craftsmen to chefs and filmmakers, the project deconstructs the familiar spatial layouts, visual languages, and workflows of these everyday spaces. Ultimately, it reconstructs the Cha Chaan Teng experience, offering visitors a renewed appreciation for Hong Kong’s unique local design culture.
A Light Among Us - Memorial Exhibition of Dr. Lee Shau Kee
"A Light Among Us" 李兆基博士紀念展— 和光同塵 departs from the conventional biographical retrospective. Instead of presenting a chronological timeline of a developer tycoon's achievements, the exhibition is curated as an intimate, reflective sanctuary. Our curation aimed to create a gathering space for former colleagues, friends, and family to reconnect and revisit their shared memories. For the wider public, the curation peels back the corporate layers to reveal the deeply human side of Dr. Lee. By focusing on personal anecdotes, quiet moments, and enduring relationships, the exhibition fosters an atmosphere of warmth, celebrating the man behind the monumental legacy.
The Journey of Growth - A Digital Storybook on the Design of The Henderson
“The Journey of Growth” reimagines the conventional architectural exhibition as an interactive digital storybook, decoding the complex design of The Henderson. Moving away from traditional blueprints, the curation adopts a biomimetic narrative, drawing a poetic parallel between the tower’s evolution and a plant’s organic lifecycle. The architectural journey is mapped across botanical stages: from the foundational soil (site) and germinating seed (concept), through the structural stem and circulating leaves, culminating in the crowning flower (the ballroom). Realised through bespoke hardware by Napp and collaborative digital design and graphics by HATO and AONA, the installation transforms structural engineering into a living narrative.
Revitalisation of the Form North Kowloon Magistracy
Working as the Heritage Consultant for the project, we worked with the team to compile the Consolidated Project Proposal for the NGO, SRACP’s submission to the Revitalising Historic Buildings through Partnership Scheme Batch VI of the HKSAR Government Development Bureau. Our role in the project includes reviewing historical plans and identifying historical and contemporary additions in the site, assessments of the conditions of the character defining elements in the historical heritage, consolidate comments and propose solutions to the AMO’s comments, compiling and updating the heritage impact assessment reports, proposing design solutions that could fulfil both the conservation standards and requirements and practical operations needs.
Revitalisation of the Fong Yuen Study Hall
Working as the Heritage Consultant for this project, we worked with the client, the Boys’ Brigade Hong Kong, to submit a proposal to the Revitalising Historic Buildings through Partnership Scheme Batch VI of the HKSAR Government Development Bureau. Our role in the project includes the reviewing of the heritage significance of the building, establishing principles and guidelines for the restoration and conservation of the heritage elements, assessments of the conditions of the character defining elements in the historical heritage, consolidate comments and propose solutions to the AMO’s comments, compiling and updating the heritage impact assessment reports, and proposing and drafting design solutions for the tendering of the project’s construction.
Shanghai Plaster Facade Conservation and Restoration for No. 4 Second Lane
Located in the tranquil neighbourhood of Taihang, Hong Kong, the facade of this 1930s Art Deco style heritage tenement building underwent a much-needed restoration after enduring decades of damage and wear. The refurbishment was carried out with minimal intervention, maintaining the building's historical integrity. The original Shanghai Plaster facade underwent careful restoration and repair, while modifications were made to accommodate its new use as an art gallery.
To Art Interior Remodeling
"To Art" transforms an entire factory floor into a dynamic hub featuring exhibition spaces, artist exchange areas, a library, and studios. Rejecting Hong Kong’s conventional, sterile "white cube" gallery model, our design philosophy prioritises reduction over addition. By stripping back the interiors to expose the building's raw, original concrete framework, we honour its industrial heritage before sensitively inserting new functional units. Crucially, the spatial remodelling opens the previously enclosed floor plan to adjacent balconies, drawing daylight and the nearby natural landscape deep into the raw environment to create a uniquely grounded, breathing space for art.
Recollection: Tao Ho - A Research, Exhibition, and Publication Project
"Recollection: Tao Ho" is a comprehensive exploration of the multi-disciplinary visions of Tao Ho (1936–2019), an architect whose influence resonates not only within Hong Kong but on a regional and international scale. Supported by Design Trust, the publication is the culmination of a seven-year research project drawing from previously unpublished archival materials newly released by Ho’s family. Trained among the pioneers of the Modern Architectural Movement, Ho’s practice extended far beyond conventional building design to encompass urban planning, graphic design, painting, and sculpture. By archiving his legacy as a true polymath, this research reframes Hong Kong's critical role in the adaptation of global architectural modernism, revealing how Ho masterfully synthesised international philosophy with local identity.
Life is Architecture - Translation for M+ Museum I.M. Pei Exhibition Book
As part of the landmark I.M. Pei: Life Is Architecture retrospective at the M+ museum, our studio led the translation of the exhibition’s comprehensive publication. This rigorous editorial task extended far beyond direct linguistic translation; it demanded a profound understanding of architectural history, structural tectonics, and mid-century modernism. We meticulously translated complex spatial concepts, archival analyses, and Pei’s transcultural philosophies, ensuring his unique synthesis of Eastern heritage and Western modernism was accurately preserved. This work bridges linguistic gaps, making the nuances of Pei’s monumental six-decade career eloquently accessible to a diverse, bilingual readership.
Bamboo Weave Pavilion
Set within a tranquil wetland fishpond in Hong Kong, the "Bamboo Weave Pavilion" reimagines the structural possibilities of a vernacular material. Moving away from the rigid, orthogonal grids typical of local construction scaffolding, this installation explores an alternative tectonic language through the intricate weaving of bamboo sticks into a cohesive structure. Inspired by the humble, functional platforms historically used by local fishermen to navigate the ponds, the design transforms everyday geometries into an immersive woven landscape. The pavilion stands as a quiet tribute to local heritage, celebrating the inherent beauty, flexibility, and systemic elegance of bamboo architecture.
Bamboo Emergency Relief Shelter
Following the devastating 2015 Nepal earthquake, critical disaster relief resources were stranded in the capital due to severely crippled land transportation networks. In response to this logistical bottleneck, we developed a robust emergency shelter prototype utilising easily accessible local bamboo. Engineered for rapid deployment, the intuitive structural system allows a team of four to fully assemble the shelter within just two days. Beyond providing immediate, secure refuge for displaced individuals, the design serves a crucial secondary purpose: protecting vital agricultural seeds from the harsh, impending wet monsoon season, thereby safeguarding the community's future food security and long-term resilience.
Pattaya Wonderfruit Pavilion
For the Wonderfruit Festival in Thailand, we designed a pavilion that celebrates bamboo as a shared traditional construction material, fostering deep cultural resonance while distinctly representing Hong Kong. The core design ambition was to recreate the experience of standing underneath and inside a traditional bamboo scaffolding—a transient structural lattice commonly found enveloping buildings across the streets of Hong Kong. By translating this everyday urban vernacular into an immersive architectural installation, the pavilion surrounds visitors in a dense, tactile web of intersecting culms, capturing the unique materiality, dappled light, and raw atmospheric energy of Hong Kong's iconic streetscapes.
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