Sands China holds extended seminar on “A Century of Iec Long Firecracker Factory in Radiance” exhibition

• Sands China hosted the extended seminar “Behind the Exhibition: Tracing Macao’s Firecracker Legacy” on 24 October.
• The event featured exhibition curator Professor Ung Vai Meng and Wilson Lam, the exhibtion’s visual designer, as guest speakers.

Sands China hosted the extended seminar “Behind the Exhibition: Tracing Macau’s Firecracker Legacy” on 24 October. The seminar featured guest speakers Ung Vai Meng, the exhibition curator, and Wilson Lam, the exhibition’s visual designer, as well as the CEO and creative director of Macau Creations. Drawing on their experiences in cultural preservation and creative design, the two speakers shared the curatorial concept and creative process behind the exhibition, helping the audience relive memories of the city’s firecracker industry.

During the seminar, held at the auditorium of the Macau Museum of Art, Professor Ung recalled how his personal interest in collecting had developed into dedication to research Macau’s culture. He expounded on his years-long experience of collecting firecracker labels and related historical documents, and their cultural value. Following the invitation from Sands China to curate the exhibition “A Century of Iec Long Firecracker Factory in Radiance,” he spent two years studying and collating historical materials, translating the results of his efforts into exhibits with both academic value and cultural significance.

Wilson Lam revealed the creative process behind the exhibition from a designer’s perspective. He explained how the design team ingeniously transformed the valuable two-dimensional materials, including firecracker labels and archives, into three-dimensional exhibition experiences, bringing memories of the firecracker industry to life.

The seminar was open to the public free of charge and attracted cultural enthusiasts and students alike. The Macau Museum was one of the exhibition’s major lending institutions and Lou Ho Ian, the museum’s director, attended to support the event. Lai Hong Kin, a local scholar of Taipa’s history and culture, also attended, underscoring the Macau cultural sector’s strong support to preserve and safeguard the city’s firecracker heritage.