Vignette
My theme, 'vignette', originates from yearning for belonging, a final resting place. With my upbringing as an expatriate living in countries such as Singapore, India and Japan, I had the rare opportunity to engage with diverse cultures, which nurtured my love for travel and learning perspectives. However, it also forced countless goodbyes that shaped my identity. I began to conceptualise each location I inhabited as an anti-chamber. The bittersweet nature of memories weighed heavily on me—places and faces fade from my memory, and to answer, I fade from theirs. In this globalising, expanding world, the individual feels much smaller, and their existence feels more fragile. My theme answers this fading feeling that you and I did exist. Each work is a snapshot, a diary entry from the lifelong search for a final resting place. The scenes portrayed are intimate views of memorable locations chosen for their impact on my desire for enduring remembrance within those spaces. In my works, I portray places I have visited with companions (statues inspired by Jizo and Dosojin statues traditionally placed along roadways in Japan as protectors of the neighbourhood and any travellers to pass) in the space, watching me and silently witnessing my existence and that of the viewer.
Baked Apple
One thing I like about Kyoto. There are cafes open until 23:00. I lied to my friends, said I needed to run one more errand. Seat for one, on a shared table with an older lady and a gentleman, we’re all here alone. “What’s a baked apple?” “It’s literally an apple baked.” Worth every cent.
A Baby Guinness
You like an Espresso Martini? Have you ever heard of a Baby Guinness before? Coffee liqueur, cream liqueur, with a drop of Hazelnut syrup. When I was little, I imagined cocktails to be drinkable sweets. I don’t think I was very wrong.
You're Taller?
A red bicycle. You always ride around the city. You’re in university now. The way you confidently walk into this restaurant makes me realize how long three years can be. So much that your presence feels even bigger in the room. Wait. You’re (actually) taller (than before)?
Today's Hotel Room
4 people, 8 wheels, we aren’t dressed to match the stone flooring, the high walls, the retro lights. My mom asks if there’s anywhere we can park our bikes at the reception. Apparently, there wasn’t any hostel open and location wise this was the best option. Apparently, it was cheap. It’s not everyday we get to stay in a hotel with floors kissed by high heels and shiny-leather shoes. Sound of the keycard. Sound of sneakers on soft carpeted floor.
56 Thousand
I missed my cousin’s wedding. I was in London. My parents didn’t. They were in Japan. As a ‘return gift’ from the ‘wedding gift’ my parents gave my cousin, we got a day-trip to a prestigious hot spring hotel. It was for two, my mom, my dad. “We’ll go as three, we’ll just pay for you (the third person)”. It’s 2pm, time to pay. We wait for the family before us to finish paying.I don’t remember who they were. I do remember their big suitcases and their paid sum on the cashier machine screen. Eyes move. “I saw it too, it was 560, not 56 thousand.”