Eden of the Orient, HK Becoming Unliveable

Belgian photographer Kris Provoost explores the striking juxtaposition of Hong Kong's "hyper-dense" housing and natural landscapes in his latest photography series, Eden of the Orient that gives an insight into Hong Kong's unique built environment, which is enveloped by greenery but recognised as one of the densest places to live on Earth. According to Provoost, the lack of space in Hong Kong is resulting in the government constructing more residential towers at greater heights. These have smaller apartments that are only available at high prices.  As such, he says there is an overwhelming "claustrophobic feeling" and that the region is "slowly becoming unlivable" for many citizens.   Hong Kong is extreme in its immense density, nowhere else do you have to deal with this level of density. Wherever you look, there are high-rise residential towers. It is quite common to have a family of four living in a tiny apartment of 40 square metres. Hong Kong's giant apartment blocks, many of which are known as "new towns", are the result of the region's booming population over the last century and a lack of flat land on which to build. Only seven per cent of the total landmass is zoned for housing.  As a result, small pockets of space between mountains are saturated with high-rise housing, and 25 per cent of the total population are housed in towers on reclaimed land.