Gone but not forgotten: Vintage collectors keep alive past eras in their homes
Freelancing designer HT Sun and his wife Teng Yue collected old furniture from all over the city to create an interior décor that reflects the age when their century-old house on Yuyuan Road was built.
At the end of a deep lane on Yuyuan Road stands a townhouse that is a century old, both in structure and interior décor.
The owners, freelance designer HT Sun and his wife Teng Yue, have eschewed the popular trend of outfitting vintage houses with modern interiors. They prefer to live surrounded by the era when the house was constructed.
Their home exemplifies the Chinese art deco style, with antique furniture and daily ware the couple collected from every corner of Shanghai. Some furnishings were salvaged from old communities in the throes of demolition; others were bought in second-hand stores.
"We are both fascinated by the design of antiques, especially desks, chairs and screens," said Teng. "It seems that designers back then had more user-friendly ideas, which contemporary designers could learn from."
Before settling down in Shanghai, the couple studied and then worked in the United Kingdom for about 10 years. They weren't interested in vintage culture until they returned to Shanghai and had a chance acquaintance with Li Minglu, the previous owner of their townhouse, who died at the age of 93 in 2021.
"The townhouse is actually part of Li's mansion," Sun told Shanghai Daily. "The family had six children, and the parents gave each of them one of six interlinked houses. You can still see the letter 'L' for Li inscribed on the gable of the townhouse."
Nowadays, most of the Li clan has dispersed overseas and various families reside in the six houses.
The townhouse Sun and Teng now own has always been well preserved and maintained. Li often returned to Shanghai from the US in his later years to check up on its maintenance.
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Entering Sun and Teng's home is like going back to Shanghai a century ago.
Courtesy of HT Sun and Teng Yue -
Courtesy of HT Sun and Teng Yue -
Courtesy of HT Sun and Teng Yue -
Courtesy of HT Sun and Teng Yue -
Courtesy of HT Sun and Teng Yue
When he met the couple, he regaled them with the history of the mansion and stories of his family. He finally sold the house to them, safe in the knowledge that it would be in good hands.
He certainly sized up that situation well. Sun and Teng have retained the original wood floor, Chinese deco-style arcade and mosaic tiles. Their addition of items such as antique fireplace screens, ceiling lamps and vintage clocks has enhanced the period aura.
"We used to bicycle around city to look for period pieces in neighborhoods condemned for demolition," Sun said. "The best time was at night, and the best place to find such treasures were the corners that streetlights didn't reach. But, in recently years, it's getting harder to find anything."
Collecting what many people regard as junk is hobby of the few, but the couple nonetheless found people of similar age and interests. One of them is photographer Hass Zhang, whom they met through common friends on secondhand websites.
Artist and collector Hass Zhang
The photographer now runs a private studio and gallery in King's Lynn Apartments in Xuhui District, a British neoclassic-style apartment building constructed in 1929.
He, too, has designed the interior of his home in retro style, with art-deco furniture, old photos, antique picture frames and daily paraphernalia from the early last century in Shanghai.
Zhang converted a room in the King's Lynn Apartments into a private gallery that displays his works and antique collection.
His collection of antiques has become an inspiration for his photo creations. For example, his photography installation series "Moonshot" is exhibited in century-old frames.
"The frames were all handmade by the craftsmen, and none of them has the very same pattern," he said. "I think that they are the epitome of the grand history of an era."
The "Moonshot" series includes photos of plane trees in front of old houses in Jing'an, Xuhui, Changning, Huangpu and Hongkou districts. Each photo, shot at night, features a tree and a lit window in the background.
"The plane trees and old houses bear witness to the history of the city," Zhang said. "And lit windows signify people living in the houses – people with stories – and all are different and beautiful. They are exactly like the uniqueness of the frames I use for them."
The installation of "Moonshot" features the King's Lynn Apartments in a photograph taken by Zhang.
Like Sun and Teng, Zhang said he believes Old Shanghai had a special vibe and spirit – part of the bedrock that is the city today. The best way to study history is to pitch it from individuals, both big names and nobodies. Sort of like connecting stars in the sky to see patterns.
A fine example of that concept is a pile of old pictures Zhang bought from an antique dealer. The series of pictures features the same Shanghai woman, who died last year in her 90s. They chronicle her life from teenage to old age.
"Through these pictures, you can see how her expressions and attire changed over time," he said. "The backdrops of the photos change. Even her husband changes as well. This series is a living example of the idiom canghai sangtian, which means 'the ups and downs of time.'"
A pile of old pictures Zhang collected from an antique dealer that feature the same Shanghai woman, who died last year in her 90s.
A group of pictures that feature the Angel of Peace monument were collected by Zhang. The monument has now long been demolished. It was erected on the Bund to commemorate the victory of World War I. The pictures were shot in February 1924, on the day that the monument was inaugurated.
But as time flies, vintage collectors find it more challenging to dig up treasures of the past. They fear that it's also getting harder to protect those that still exist.
Teng, for one, cherishes the memories of browsing through old warehouses now long gone.
"I remember one warehouse in the suburbs that was as grand as a palace, and I was astounded when I entered it," she recalled. "It contained only old wooden chairs – hundreds and thousands of them. They filled an entire floor. As my husband and I explored with flashlights, we felt we were browsing through a treasure vault."
She added, somewhat ruefully, "It's almost impossible to find such places anymore. There once was an antique shop that we frequented. We witnessed how it had to progressively move further from downtown, until it was finally forced to shut. That was very sad."
But perhaps all is not lost.
The recent hit TV drama "Blossoms Shanghai" has evoked a new wave of nostalgia. Although the TV show focuses on Shanghai in the 1990s, it has whetted interest in the city's even older history.
"The TV drama will not affect everybody, but there must be some people who are interested enough to read the original story the drama is based on and then go on to navigate the oceans of history," Zhang said.
