2023
False Ink-lings; Diasporic Limbo is an immersive experiential installation exploring the concept of perception - a second volume of the False Ink-lings series.
Influenced by the words of William Clifford,
“If a man, holding a belief which he was taught in childhood or persuaded of afterwards, keeps down and pushes away any doubts which arise about it in his mind, purposely avoids the reading of books and the company of men that call in question or discuss it, and regards as impious those questions which cannot easily be asked without disturbing it – the life of that man is one long sin against mankind.”
False Ink-lings offers an exploration of stereotypes, the questioning of one's beliefs, and the presentation of different perspectives. Through shifting colours, different layers of identity and reality get highlighted as it reacts to the CMY prints.
This volume focuses on the cultural limbo we members of the Asian-Australian diaspora reside in - the layers of cultural influence and how they intermingle and confuse us and the people around us.
Drawing from my personal experiences as a Chinese-Indonesian-Australian, the set of prints presents phrases that have been used to question my cultural identity:
"But you're not really [Chinese/ Indonesian/ Australian],
"Where are you from?",
"What type of... [Asian likes Vegemite]",
"Where's the yolk?!" (Why are you all white? Where's the yellow{Asian}),
"Si Pisang" (Indonesian that translates to 'The Banana'- Yellow/ Asian on the outside, White on the inside),
"Mukanya Doang" (Indonesian that translates to 'Just the face'- a similar sentiment to 'Si Pisang',
"We're not related' (Inspired by my good friend Justin Cueno as it relates to the homogeneity of the perceived Asian identity.
"Kudos Emerging Award", Woodburn Creatives, Sydney, NSW (2023) [group exhibition; finalist]
"False Ink-lings; Diasporic Limbo", AD Space, Sydney, NSW (2023) [solo exhibition]