Upholding the “Preservation of Cultural Heritage” as its guiding principle, the Jao Tsung-I Academy has established a broad and open cultural platform for the general public to conduct cultural exchange as well as to experience and help preserve the unique culture of Hong Kong.
From time to time, the Academy, in various modes of cooperation with local and overseas cultural organizations, organizes different types of art and cultural activities to promote Chinese culture.
Jao Tsung-I Academy, located at the former Lai Chi Kok Hospital, is a historic compound selected as one of the projects under the “Revitalising Historic Buildings Through Partnership Scheme” of the Development Bureau of the HKSAR Government.
Today it takes on a new role as a hub for arts and culture promotion, reaching out to different parties to collaborate and enrich the cultural life of the Hong Kong community.
Since the end of the nineteenth century, the present site of the Jao Tsung-I Academy has served successively as a customs station, as dwellings for Chinese labourers, as a quarantine station, as a prison, as a hospital for infectious diseases, and as a psychiatric rehabilitation centre. It has performed totally different roles and functions in response to the different needs of society at different times.
The compound has now been revitalised as a cultural landmark. Its cluster of buildings has been converted into various types of facilities, continuing to play a part in furthering cultural exchange.
The site of Jao Tsung-I Academy has more than 100 years of rich and vibrant history. In this long history, it was used as a customs station, Chinese laborers’ quarters, a quarantine station, a prison, an infectious disease hospital and a psychiatric rehabilitation care home. For more than a century, this place has reflected the historical and social changes of Hong Kong.
Now it is revitalized as a center that promotes Chinese culture and facilitates cultural exchange.