Taste of nostalgia

He Wen's grandparents sold imported goods in the 1920s, and the collection of items has remained with his family. Photos by Yu Ran / Shanghai Star

Many people wish they could experience the style and sophistication of old Shanghai, now they can, with art critic He Wen using his family heirlooms to evoke a bygone era in a new cafe. Yu Ran reports.

He Wen has turned the old villa where his grandmother used to live into a cultural salon, displaying vintage imported goods including phonographs, clocks and furniture, as his way to re-create the spirit of old Shanghai.

Born and raised in Shanghai, He spent much of his childhood with his grandparents, who ran an imported goods store in the 1920s and owned a collection of antique foreign items. He has been deeply influenced by the style of old Shanghai, which was pursued by locals with good taste and good manners before the revolution.

His grandparents' store sold phonographs, clocks, music boxes and records to high-class locals who had a ‘petit bourgeoisie' attachment to these items.

"The spirit of Laokele (meaning old clerk in Shanghai dialect), referring to the refined lifestyle of gentlemen with a good salary and family upbringing, should be passed on through the generations as a cultural heritage which is missing in modern life," says He, an art critic in his 40s.

He's grandparents moved to Hong Kong in the 1950s, taking their collection with them. The collection returned to Shanghai in the 1980s when his grandmother moved back to the mainland.