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A Shell, Every Month #1-2

 

A Shell, Every Month reflects on the traces of what has been experienced, survived, and transformed by women through time.

 

The egg has long been a symbol of life, rebirth, hope, and female fertility. Yet we often forget the shell—the part that holds, protects, and carries the traces of what has happened.

 

Once cracked, its fractures reveal damage, but they also become evidence of endurance—a quiet record of what the body has lived through.

Future Relic #1

 

We rarely realize how an object can shape the way we see people. The stamp “Made in China” has become closely associated with stereotypes of cheap, low-quality, and mass-produced goods. These associations can extend beyond objects, influencing how Chinese people and their descendants are perceived.

 

The label no longer simply describes where an object was produced. It carries ideas about labour, value, identity, and even the way human life is valued.

 

Future Relic reflects on how a simple label, once detached from its original cultural meaning, can become a marker of identity. It questions the lasting impact of global migration and the stereotypes that travel with people, objects, and commodities across borders.

The Marble Chose Not to Hit the Vase

 

After becoming a parent, we become more aware of our own childhood and the wounds we carry from it. We may fear that these experiences will affect the way we raise our children.

 

The marble becomes a metaphor for childhood trauma, while the vase represents adulthood. We try to keep them apart, hoping to prevent the past from interfering with the present. Yet, through gravity, the two objects naturally come together.

 

Perhaps we cannot completely separate who we were from who we have become. In the presence of our children, we are reminded of our own childhood and given another chance to see life through different eyes.

The Shelf Remembers

 

As time passes, we often look back at our childhood memories. The memories may feel clearer, but they can also change as we see them from a different point in life.

 

The shelf holds objects from the past, while the marble reminds us that we are still moving through it.

The Ugly Duckling

 

As a child, I often saw swan figurines as vintage decorative objects, often found among mothers’ collections. Seeing them now as a mother, they have become more than their beautiful appearance.

 

They remind me of The Ugly Duckling, a story about searching for our own value and worth—a struggle that we continue to face throughout life. What stays with me is the mother duck, who continues to protect and be proud of her child despite how others see him.

 

It reminds me that sometimes the most important acknowledgment of our worth begins at home.

The Wildflowers, Too, Are Flowers

 

We call some flowers wild because they grow naturally, without being planted, seeded, or cared for by humans. Yet they still grow, bloom, and provide food and shelter for insects and animals.

 

The same gentle reminder can be applied to the things around us that have become so familiar that we no longer notice them. The domestic, the ordinary, and the everyday can quietly hold meaning, care, and life.

 

Sometimes, we simply forget to look at what has always been there.

 

In response, the artist creates replicas of the porcelain fragments using paper, drawing a connection to the Chinese tradition of burning joss paper to honor ancestors. Through this gesture, she reflects on her ancestral history and pays respect to the traditions that continue to shape her identity as a person of Chinese descent in Indonesia.

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