As the protests in Hong Kong have unfolded, the rallies have produced something else as well: a dazzling display of protest art, with a fervor and scale that would surprise any city.

In a city better known for its financial excess than a rich arts scene, the Umbrella Movement has become an iconic cultural happening.

The city’s chief executive, C.Y. Leung, is a popular subject of the protesters’ art.

He has been depicted on posters as a wolf, as Hitler, and as Mao.

It’s conceivable that some objects could wind up in such collections or museums. One place unlikely to host such a show, however, is Hong Kong itself. Most big cultural events here are sponsored or financed by the government; most dollars flow from the government’s Arts Development Council, which tends to fund established groups—orchestras, Cantonese opera, the ballet. The Hong Kong government, arts specialists say, won’t want to help preserve art that skewers the chief executive and the city’s leadership.