Kevin Wong (@kevinwonka)

From: Hong Kong

Currently living in: New York City, NY

Favorite food spots: Mamouns, Nom Wah, Raoul’s, Balthazar, The Butcher’s Daughter

Studying: Architecture & Urban Design

It seems like Kevin Wong was destined to live abroad — after all, even his upbringing was international.

Born in Hong Kong, a city Kevin believes occupies an ambiguous space between traditional and modern, Cantonese and Western, he grew up with four citizenships and can speak just as many languages. His multicultural background acted as a catalyst, driving him to explore and fostering a passion for documenting and learning more about the world on both physical and personal levels.

It’s no surprise that this passion for exploration brought him to New York City four years ago to pursue Architecture and Urban Design on the university level. He’d always been attracted to the vibrancy, density, and energy of the city — the perfect ecosystem for a designer, a photographer, and a thinker. And while New York City has posed its challenges — Kevin has had to learn to be patient (especially with the MTA), its rewards have been manifold in terms of opportunity and personal growth.

New York has also acted as a source of inspiration; throughout his years of exploration and relocation, there has been a constant in his life: photography. Kevin believes that when photography is paired with a story or thought, it can be a powerful tool that often encourages meaningful reflection.

He explains that taking photos isn’t just about snapping a pretty scene, but about preserving the moments in time that pass relentlessly, beautiful moments that often go unnoticed.

“Photography is my method of staying present and inspiring an awareness. A lot of people see my photos and ask what camera and lens I use, but it’s not about the hardware at all,” he says.

“The real question I want to ask them is how bad do you want it? How early are you willing to wake up for the sunrise? How many times are you willing to revisit the same location just to get the right conditions?

The funny thing is, even when you’ve captured the moment you’ve been waiting for, it’s never how you expected it to be.

Most times,” Kevin admits, “it’s even better.”