On 19th November 2014, I spent 0900-1200hrs roaming through the #OccupyCentral sites at Causeway Bay and Admiralty during a short layover in Hong Kong. This is my attempt at curating some of the movement’s organic semiotics, meme innovation, place-making, and performative resistance. This post follows up on The Anatomy of a Social Media(ted) Protest: #OccupyCentral on Instagram. See also An organic #OccupyCentral timeline on-site at Admiralty. Shot on an iPhone 5, unedited. Image Heavy. 

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01 Agentic Cute

Totoro

Manga

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Print posters

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Hand drawn cartoons

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02 Popular Culture Appropriation

Materialism

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Pop music

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Starwars, Terminator, Spiderman, Silversurfer, Gundam, Toy Story

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Mr Men and Little Miss

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Mind the gap

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Banksy remix

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03 Religious and Political Appropriation

Religious figures

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Emblems of activism: Amnesty International, Anonymous, Au San Suu Kyi, Viva la France

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The UK crew

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The HKG crew

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04 Chinese Folklore Appropriation

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05 Creative Enterprise

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06 DIY Resistance

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07 Paper Power

Origami

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Post-it gallery

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News parody

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HSBC parody

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Meme heaven

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Chinese wordplay

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Christmas

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Flyers

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Hand-drawn graphics

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Hand-written word

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A4 posters

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08 Wave-riding Artists

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09 The watched are watching the watchers

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10 Self-archive

Admiralty MTR collage

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Political map

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FAQ

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Causeway Bay on-site timeline

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Admiralty on-site timeline [see full transcription here]

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11 Cross-platform sharing of content

Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube

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QR codes

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Mass produced stickers

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Television news

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Local Press

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International Press

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12 Place-making

Barricades

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Furniture

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Plants

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Makeshift shelter

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Statement shelter

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Tent decor

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Rows and rows of tents

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Juxtaposed against skyscrapers

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13 Grid politics

Legalese and terminology

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Officious transport notices

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Media stand

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MTR paper sprawl

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McDonald’s paper sprawl

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International passersby

Text:
‘STAND FIRM BE PROUD
CANADIANS ARE AMONG U
CONTINUE FIGHTING FOR
WHAT RIGHTFULLY
BELONGS TO YOU!’

Added in ink and pencil scribbles:
‘+AUSTRALIANS!
and 1 Norwegian
+German
+FRENCH <3
+British!
+USA
+MEXICANS
+SINGAPOREAN
+West PHILLY
+HARLEM
+Malaysia
Not for me’

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14 Self-regulating ecology

Agriculture

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Loan systems

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Space structuration

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Routing traffic

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Essentials: Phone charging station, study group, washroom facilities

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Rules

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15 Survival guide

First aid centre, suggested attire and safety essentials, complaint bureau.

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Have you been at any of the #OccupyCentral nodes? What other semiotics and ecological organizations have you seen? Beep me!