Who we are...
By the islands. For the islands.
The Inter-island Festival (船到橋頭生活節) is an art and life event that borrows the existing inter-island ferry connection between Peng Chau, Mui Wo, Chi Ma Wan, and Cheung Chau, to celebrate and build upon the rich and varied cultures of living by the inter-island sea.
Surrounding and carrying us with its gracious blues, calming backwashes, and countless surprises, the sea is a vital actor of our daily lives. Sadly, we tend to overlook it. So we invited scholars, artists, architects, biologists, poets, crafts-wo-men, musicians, writers, performers, and neighbours to exchange, collaborate, and create original works to disrupt our routines with poetic, humoristic, inspiring shared moments around our sea. On the four week-ends of November 2023 and on one weekend in March 2021, islanders and non-islanders alike joined us on boats, on tiny shoreline paths, up on the hills, pausing and attending to the region's rhythms: rocks, waves, herons, clams, crabs, fishing boats, seagulls, buffaloes, chitons…
Our hope: sooner than later, we all remember that the sea is alive; that the sea is full of lives, independent and connected, that find in her flows the optimum conditions to thrive. And that we —humans of the islands—thrive too, only when we connect and weave lifelong threads of mutual respect and dependency with our aquatic neighbours.
2023 Festival Highlights
The second Inter-island Festival was held from 4–24 November 2023, focusing on the inter-island sea surrounding the islands of Cheung Chau, Lantau, and Peng Chau. Over 50 collaborators organised more than 70 events such as tours, workshops, installations, performances, open days, and screenings. Islanders were organisers, participants, volunteers, and donors. More than 10,000 people attended the festival.
The second edition was supported by the Design Trust, C.C. Wu Cultural & Education Foundation Fund and other enthusiastic organisations and individuals on the islands.
A Look Back at the First Festival
The first Inter-island Festival was held from 26–28 March 2021, focusing on the art, tradition, nature, and urban and rural environments of Cheung Chau, Chi Ma Wan, Mui Wo, and Peng Chau. Over 50 collaborators organised more than 40 events such as tours, workshops, installations, performances, open days, and screenings. Islanders were organisers, participants, volunteers and donors. More than 10,000 people attended the festival.
The first edition was supported by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, Design Trust, C.C. Wu Cultural & Education Foundation Fund and other enthusiastic organisations and individuals on the islands.