［對談］轉譯旅人的眼界：重讀《從前，有個香港》

Long before This is Hong Kong became a cherished time capsule for local readers, it was born from the singular lens of Miroslav Šašek. A lifelong wanderer across world cities, Šašek was accustomed to observing urban life with an appreciative, subtle distance. When he arrived in 1960s Hong Kong, he spent painstaking hours redrawing Chinese shop signs—iterating dozens of times through language and cultural barriers to capture the vibrant textures of daily life.

In this sharing session, the editorial team behind the book’s Traditional Chinese edition reflects on the origins and journey of bringing this work to light. How was this forgotten gem first “discovered”? How did the editors preserve its original mid-century context while holding up a mirror to Hong Kong today? And how did the translator delicately blend Šašek’s European gaze with an authentic local voice? Join us for a thoughtful afternoon exploring how a half-century-old portrait of the city finds new life today.

Conducted in Cantonese.

在《從前，有個香港》成為本土讀者珍視的歲月膠囊之前，這本繪本源於 Miroslav Šašek 獨特的觀看方式。半生漫遊於世界各地的 Šašek，習慣以一種帶有距離卻溫柔的目光觀察城市。1960 年代他來到香港，為了精準描繪街頭招牌的中文字，曾反覆重畫數十次，在語言與文化的壁壘之間，記錄下當時這座城市的日常百態。

本次分享會邀請到《從前，有個香港》繁體中文版的編輯團隊，分享出版這本書的緣起和歷程——當初是如何「發現」這本書的？編輯團隊如何保留當時的語境同時對照現在？譯者又怎樣融合作者的歐洲視角與在地味道？誠邀各位一同前來，細味這部半個世紀前的城市紀錄。

活動以廣東話進行。