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Vincent Leung

“Photography is a universal language that transcends the barriers of culture and time.” These wise words from Fan Ho perfectly encapsulate the premise of a new exhibition celebrating his poetic camerawork at the Palazzo Falletti di Barolo in Turin, Italy.
A Baroque noble residence might not be the first place that comes to mind when looking to discover Ho’s mid-20th century Hong Kong compositions, but the show invites viewers to look beyond the obvious and make connections to those scenes from a faraway land.
The exhibition, titled “Fan Ho. Il Maestro della Fotografia di Hong Kong” (Fan Ho. The Master of Photography of Hong Kong), premiered on September 11 in the aristocratic residence in the city centre.
This marks the first time Ho’s photographs have received such extensive attention in Europe, with around 100 works curated by Elisa Maupas on display. Maupas worked closely with Sarah Van Ingelgom – also known as Sarah Greene – from Hong Kong’s Blue Lotus Gallery, the exclusive representative of Ho’s photographic works.

Maupas has curated several high-profile photography exhibitions in Turin in recent years, including a particularly memorable one on Vivian Maier in 2022.
“Turin has a special relationship with photography,” she says. “It is where the first photographs ever taken in Italy were shot, and the home of the first active camera clubs.”
Turin’s long-standing affiliation with the artistic discipline has inspired her to seek out talent across the globe, not just the expected names.
“I don’t know why Fan Ho hasn’t been showcased much outside Hong Kong and the United States, so it’s actually an honour for us to be able to realise the project here,” she says.

Van Ingelgom notes that the show’s scale surpasses nearly all the Fan Ho exhibitions she organised in Hong Kong. She also points out that the show marks Ho’s second meaningful encounter with Italy; the photographer had previously met the legendary film director Federico Fellini in Rome’s Cinecitta, where they reflected on how much an artist’s status could influence public opinion of their craft.
While that trip fulfilled Ho’s personal quest to come face-to-face with someone he had long idolised, one could imagine that this posthumous event decades later allows him to engage with the Italian public on his own terms, using Hong Kong as a canvas to experiment with different forms of stylistic representation of human activity and interaction.
Before visitors even see the first photos, their senses are immediately heightened as they enter the venue. Palazzo Barolo was built in the 17th century and boasts all the glamour one expects from an Italian palace: a monumental marble staircase, crystal chandeliers, frescoed ceilings and more.

The opulent surroundings are a stark yet intriguing contrast to the pieces featured. While the flamboyant interior details scream, Ho’s mainly black-and-white works whisper with his play of light and shadow. The purposeful geometric structure and stillness in the photos become more pronounced.
Maupas is confident that viewers will not be distracted by the surroundings.
“We hung the photos on gallery panels [to put them in focus], but at the same time, they are in a dialogue with the existing tapestry of the space,” she says. “I think it actually adds to the experience.”

Local visitors are likely to recognise common ground between 1960s Hong Kong and Italy during the post-World War II era, a time of rapid industrialisation and social transformation. The ways societies and peoples forged ahead with limited means in Italy were immortalised through the street photography of Gianni Berengo Gardin, Paolo di Paolo and fellow realists. As Maupas points out, the often-captured moments of people engaging in everyday activities – having lunch or sitting idly in a stairwell – are the same kind of subjects that Ho favoured.
What is immensely fascinating is the distinct visual language Ho chose to tell those shared stories. While the Italian maestros homed in on the vivacity and emotions of the characters inhabiting the public space, his camera – aided by intervention in the darkroom – strikes a contemplative tone.
Photos like Coolies and Hawkers (1958) and Different Directions (1958) are prime examples of Ho seeking to distil harmony out of Hong Kong’s crowded urban landscape. Van Ingelgom also singles out the photograph Private (1960) – an image featuring a couple framed in a window above a “private” street sign – that epitomises his keen sense of observation by calling attention to the way spatial boundaries mediate perceived and actual intimacy.
“His ability to connect to the human experience is what makes his photography so strong and powerful,” Maupas adds.


Beyond Turin’s Museum of Oriental Art, which is just a stone’s throw from Palazzo Barolo, the city has seen an increasing number of Asian art exhibitions in recent years, something that could well see locals develop a stronger affinity for Ho’s oeuvre.
Though public interest remains geared towards ancient genres such as Ukiyo-e woodblock art and Jingdezhen porcelain, the Fan Ho show contributes to a continuing phenomenon in which Italian art lovers recontextualise Eastern creativity through a modern, auteur-driven lens.
“Fan Ho. Il Maestro della Fotografia di Hong Kong” is showing from September 11, 2026, to January 10, 2027, at Palazzo Falletti di Barolo, Via delle Orfane, 7, 10122, Turin, Italy.


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Fan Ho’s poetic photos of mid-20th century Hong Kong show in an unlikely place

Different Directions (1958) by Fan Ho. Photo: Fan Ho Trust and Estate, courtesy of Blue Lotus Gallery

Coolies and Hawkers (1958) by Fan Ho. The late photographer’s evocative Hong Kong street photography is being showcased at the Palazzo Falletti di Barolo in Turin, Italy. Photo: Fan Ho Trust and Estate, courtesy of Blue Lotus Gallery

Around 100 photographs by the late photographer Fan Ho are on display at the Palazzo Falletti di Barolo in Turin, Italy. Photo: Palazzo Falletti di Barolo

The exhibition premiered on September 11. Photo: Getty Images

Fan’s minimalist black-and-white works contrast the palace’s opulent interiors. Photo: Palazzo Falletti di Barolo

Palazzo Barolo was built in the 17th century and boasts all the glamour one might expect from an Italian palace. Photo: Palazzo Falletti di Barolo

Approaching Shadow (1954) by Fan Ho. Photo: Fan Ho Trust and Estate, courtesy of Blue Lotus Gallery

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Lifestyle

Arts

An Italian palace in Turin is hosting a new exhibition of Fan’s works that capture everyday human activity in 1950s and 60s Hong Kong


An Italian palace in Turin is hosting a new exhibition of Fan’s works that capture everyday human activity in 1950s and 60s Hong Kong.


Fan Ho’s poetic photos of mid-20th century Hong Kong show in an unlikely place

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}An Italian palace in Turin is hosting a new exhibition of Fan’s works that capture everyday human activity in 1950s and 60s Hong Kong

An Italian palace in Turin is hosting a new exhibition of Fan’s works that capture everyday human activity in 1950s and 60s Hong Kong