Workers at a refuse point in Kwai Chung Estate, a Hong Kong public housing estate, have removed art works that were displayed on the walls, telling HKFP they had been told to do so by the Housing Department.
The paintings – which were collected by refuse point workers over several years – were taken down and thrown away per the Housing Department’s request on Monday, a worker at the station told HKFP on Tuesday.
See also: Cleaners’ art collection transforms Hong Kong refuse point into gallery
The department was worried that too many people would visit the spot and obstruct the workers after reports of the make-shift gallery surfaced online, the worker said.
The workers said that it did not bother them that they had to throw the paintings away, as “they were rubbish anyway,” adding that they had decorated the collection point only for themselves.
In a response to HKFP, the Housing Department said on Tuesday evening that the refuse collection point in question “is used for refuse processing and is not suitable for storing other items.”
“In order to maintain environmental hygiene, the [refuse collection point] should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected constantly. The odds and ends [at the refuse collection point] should be removed to facilitate the cleansing and disinfection,” the department said.
The department added that no one was penalised.
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