If it hadn't been for the rain, I would probably never have found Atelier Sun Ho. I noticed a small…read moreprinted sign advertising fine art materials in a dark stairwell at the bottom of a tiny building on Aberdeen Street whilst sheltering from the weather and made a note to come back and explore, which I did. The address is actually on Wellington Street, but as mentioned above, the entrance is at the bottom of Aberdeen Street. Just follow the signs up and you'll arrive at a quaint door with a sign rather appropriately painted on an artist's paint palette. When I visited a small class was taking place with the students all working on individual projects. The level of ability in the class seemed relatively undeveloped so it seems that beginner's are very welcome at Atelier Sun Ho. I was hoping to find an art store closer to home than my usual shop of choice, Artland, but was a little disappointed by the tiny range of materials available. I also did not recognise any of the brands but was assured that they were of top quality despite being made in China. The small range of metallics paints (acrylic) caught my eye but I couldn't think of anything to use them for so resisted the urge to buy. There were a number of pre-stretched canvases available but no sketch books or watercolour pads. Individual pages of watercolour paper was on sale for $15/pc which works out marginally cheaper per page than the Daeler Rowney pads I usually purchase. I ended up only buying two rather charming pots of various charcoal sticks which were packaged in cardboard and decorated with a Chinese ink painting design. At only $22 a set, they are considerably cheaper than the Daeler Rowney sets I've used in the past and just as effective to use. All in all, Atelier Sun Ho is a cute little art shop for basic staples but is lacking in supply. The cash only policy is inconvenient given the nearest HSBC is on Queens Road Central but the goods are generally inexpensive compared to more prominent art supply stores.

At night it's always easier to spot shops located in high rises around Hong Kong. Whether it's the…read morelights or the quietness that makes you look up, it's a cool way to discover places that you wouldn't have noticed at day time. I had walked past this area of Queen's Road East possibly every single day and never checked out this place. Last night I finally did. I came into the building (and had to wait for the lift for about 15 minutes...) and got up to the second floor. It was late and the place was about to close, but a very friendly guy welcomed me in. I had picked up a leaflet downstairs and knew they were about art classes but I wasn't sure they also run classes for adults as well as kids (8 months to 5 years) and juniors (6 to 10 years). The studio is ample enough to accommodate for big groups (maybe ten people on one side and 10 other on the other) and it doesn't lack decoration. Indeed, the pieces of art by the students made for a great deco. There are also nice small fish pictures made by one of the teachers who later showed me some of his works and he's a real artist. What a talent. He explained to me how classes work: you go for a trial lesson (normally they last for two hours) and pay half the normal price (360HKD) and you pick the canvas, use their materials and apron and get all the guidance from them (there's another teacher). They would help you with painting techniques, perspectives and so on...They have only been operating in this studio since January but the place already got that character that makes artisty spaces so authentic. If you are planning on develop your creative skills or you simply want to let loose your imagination you may want to try them!