The Shell #1
The work adopts the form of a Chinese Bagua
mirror, replacing the traditional Bagua pattern around the central mirror with
images of male hair loss patterns and the stressors I face in pursuing an
artistic career in the Netherlands.
The Bagua mirror is an octagonal-framed mirror commonly found in Chinese households, where it serves as a protective talisman believed to deflect negative energy. Originating from the Yi Jing (The Book of Changes), 'Bagua' refers to the pattern surrounding the mirror, which the ancient Chinese divination is based on.
In the transition from my Chinese identity to becoming more Dutch, I found myself constantly seduced by my home culture. After graduation, under the immense stress of increasingly stringent immigration policies and restricted access to the labor market, I turn to Bagua-based divination to manage my overwhelming anxiety and insecurity. Ironically, while desperately seeking affirmation from the Dutch experience, my home culture echoes back. In this context, the physical structure of the Bagua mirror transforms into a symbolic shell, encapsulating the unsettling experience of integration and becoming.
The Bagua mirror is an octagonal-framed mirror commonly found in Chinese households, where it serves as a protective talisman believed to deflect negative energy. Originating from the Yi Jing (The Book of Changes), 'Bagua' refers to the pattern surrounding the mirror, which the ancient Chinese divination is based on.
In the transition from my Chinese identity to becoming more Dutch, I found myself constantly seduced by my home culture. After graduation, under the immense stress of increasingly stringent immigration policies and restricted access to the labor market, I turn to Bagua-based divination to manage my overwhelming anxiety and insecurity. Ironically, while desperately seeking affirmation from the Dutch experience, my home culture echoes back. In this context, the physical structure of the Bagua mirror transforms into a symbolic shell, encapsulating the unsettling experience of integration and becoming.
