香港藝術家楊學德（阿德）自2000年代起，以濃烈色彩與獨特視角描繪香港的人情與變遷。他的創作扎根於本土記憶，從漫畫到繪畫，始終圍繞懷舊、身份與社會變革的複雜關係。
Hong Kong artist Yeung Hok Tak (Ah Tak) has been depicting the city’s humanity and transformations since the 2000s with intense colours and a unique perspective. Rooted in local memory, his creations—from comics to paintings—consistently explore the complex relationship between nostalgia, identity, and social change.
早年連載於「曱甴漫畫」的半自傳作品《錦繡藍田》，以藍田邨為背景，將消逝的市井生活化為情感豐沛的圖像，成為香港懷舊文化的標誌性敘事。這種對過去的凝視，並非單純美化歷史，而是透過個人與集體記憶的交織，探問何為「香港精神」。
His early semi-autobiographical work, How Blue Was My Valley, serialized in Cockroach Comic, used the vanished Lam Tin Estate as a backdrop, transforming bygone urban life into emotionally rich imagery that became an iconic narrative of Hong Kong’s nostalgic culture. This gaze upon the past does not merely romanticize history but interrogates the meaning of “Hong Kong spirit” through the interplay of personal and collective memory.
楊學德的繪畫延續其漫畫的敘事性，卻更趨向超現實與詩意。他筆下的香港既熟悉又陌生：廢棄車場化身《廢墟樂園》，屋邨巨龍與孩童嬉戲（《伏匿匿》），維港鐘樓漂浮於夢境般的空間。這些畫面脫離消費主義懷舊的刻板符號，轉以隱喻與荒誕重構城市記憶。在近年個展「好大個煙圈」與「老地方見」中，他更以文字與圖像互文，調侃社會現狀，如《我要出去射爆你》中對都市欲望的戲謑，或《冇嘢要申報》對荒謬現實的坦然直視。
Yeung’s paintings retain the narrative quality of his comics but lean towards surrealism and poetry. His Hong Kong is both familiar and alien: a scrapyard becomes Junkyard in Paradise, a dragon plays hide-and-seek with children in a public housing estate (Gonna Get You All), and the Victoria Harbour clock tower floats in a dreamlike space. These scenes break away from clichéd consumerist nostalgia, reconstructing urban memory through metaphor and absurdity. In recent solo exhibitions such as “What a Big Smoke Ring” and “I See You There,” he further intertwines text and imagery to satirize social realities, as seen in the playful critique of urban desires in I Will Come for You or the candid confrontation of absurdity in Nothing To Declare.
楊學德的作品始終帶著溫潤的幽默與惆悵。如《最後的暑假》中青春易逝的唏噓，《老婆抌晒我啲高達》裡中年無奈的共鳴，甚至動物主角《嘿嘿真儍逼》對人類處境的諷喻，皆在鮮明色彩下隱藏對時代的叩問。過去不一定更好，但我們必須關注歷史如何被重寫。這種清醒的懷舊，讓他的創作超越地域性，成為對普遍人性與生存狀態的觀察。
Yeung’s works consistently carry a warm humour and melancholy. The lament over fleeting youth in Last Summer Vacation, the resonance of mid-life helplessness in All My Gundams Had Been Trashed, and even the satire of the human condition through animal protagonists in What A Fool—all conceal profound inquiries into the era beneath vibrant colours. The past isn’t necessarily better, but we must pay attention to how history is rewritten. This sober nostalgia allows his creations to transcend locality, becoming observations on universal human nature and existence.
從漫畫家到畫家，楊學德以二十年創作歷程見證香港的流變。他的畫布不僅是記憶的載體，更是一座讓觀眾「舊地重遊」的橋樑。在符號紛陳的畫面中，我們看見自己的童年、掙扎與希望，從而理解：所謂「老地方」，既是地理的座標，也是情感與身份的錨點。透過他的眼睛，香港始終是一座既荒誕又深情，既失落卻永恆的城市。
From comic artist to painter, Yeung Hok Tak has witnessed Hong Kong’s transformations through two decades of creative practice. His canvases are not merely vessels of memory but bridges for viewers to “revisit old haunts.” Within his richly symbolic visuals, we see our own childhoods, struggles, and hopes, coming to understand that the “old place” is both a geographical coordinate and an anchor for emotions and identity. Through his eyes, Hong Kong remains a city both absurd and deeply affectionate, lost yet eternal.
圖片提供：楊學德｜Courtesy of Yeung Hok Tak