Bespoke (virtual) Speaker Series – Peter Hibbard on Shanghai, The Cathay, Sassoon & Art-Deco – 21/4/20 – 7pm China time

Posted: April 18th, 2020 | No Comments »

Date: Tuesday April 21, 2020 at 7pm China Standard Time / 12pm GMT

Details, RSVP, Tickets etc: click here

The inimitable Peter Hibbard on 1930s Shanghai, the Far East’s most cosmopolitan city, a city that exuded luxury, style and excitement attracting businessmen, thrill-seekers and refugees from across the globe. Nowhere represented this more than Sir Victor Sassoon’s Cathay Hotel (now the Peace Hotel), an Art Deco masterpiece that towers above Shanghai’s Bund and was the heart of the city’s wild social scene. The fortunes of the hotel have since mirrored those of the city, weathering war, revolution and social upheaval. Join Peter as he shares the fascinating stories and personalities behind the city’s most iconic landmark.

Not only is Peter one of the leading authorities on old Shanghai, it’s fair to say he knows a thing or two about historic hotels: he currently serves as Heritage and Archive Ambassador to The Peninsula Hong Kong and wrote Peace at the Cathay, the definitive work on the Peace Hotel, which was published in 2011. He lived in Shanghai for many years, reviving the Royal Asiatic Society, acting as an expert guide and publishing a number of key works on the city’s foreign concession era before he returned to the UK in 2013.

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