'Happy House'

 

 

Meliantha Muliawan views domestic objects as quiet witnesses to family life, reflecting the often overlooked labor that keeps a household running. Plates and glasses are ordinary necessities, valued for their practical use rather than their presence. Their availability makes them easy to take for granted, and their absence is often noticed only when they are broken or no longer usable.

​

When a plate or glass breaks, however, it is not always immediately discarded. A mother may try to repair it, finding ways to extend its use rather than replace it. This seemingly small act reflects a broader role that women, particularly mothers and housewives, are often expected to fulfill: nurturing, maintaining, and repairing what holds a family together. Their labor is embedded in everyday routines, repeated so consistently that it can become almost invisible.

​

Through these familiar objects, Meliantha draws a parallel between the treatment of domestic things and the undervalued position of mothers within the household. Like a broken plate that is considered easy to replace, the labor of a mother is often treated as ordinary, expected, and endlessly available. The emotional and physical work required to sustain a family is rarely acknowledged precisely because it is so fundamental to daily life. What appears effortless from the outside may demand continuous care, attention, and sacrifice.

​

By turning her attention to broken plates and cups, the artist questions the assumption that what is ordinary must also be insignificant. The act of repairing becomes a way to recognize the value of what is often overlooked, while also revealing the burden placed on those expected to keep everything together. The work asks us to reconsider not only the objects we take for granted, but also the people whose labor allows our homes and families to function. In doing so, Meliantha challenges the idea that care is an endless resource and that those who provide it can always be relied upon without recognition.