Sinicized, Feminized, and Objectified
Witnessing the Epistemic Practice of Labour as Love
OCAD GradEx 109 | Thesis Exhibition | 100 McCaul Street, Room 490
Responding to lived experiences of Sinophobia, gender-based violence, and anti-queerness, this body of work uses a range of media, including sculptural installation, painting, and textile embroidery, as tools of self-expression and resistance to the oppressive nature of “Tradition.” Through processes of intensive textile Labour, I bear witness to the unseen Labours of Chinese Women in canada by portraying the sinicized and feminized Object empathetically as an homage to the role of Chinese women within and beyond the scope of motherhood and/or creation. Informed by a culture of feminine self-sacrifice, and considering the racialized and gendered nature of the canadian Labour market, I deny the dehumanizing practices of female objectification that relegates Chinese Women as objects of domestic Labour and sexual desire.
wife is like fine china
hand embroidered cotton thread and glass seed beads on silk organza, hung on artist’s hair and synthetic blended wig, found vase, and wooden structure, 30.5 cm x 30.5 cm x 92 cm, 2024.
With over 500 hours of needle work, the intensive Labour of embroidery and beadwork calls attention to the social inequalities and power dynamics presented within the Canadian Labour market, with Chinese immigrant women having to shift into career paths that are racialized and gendered. The bridal veil is placed atop a straight and long black wig, consisting of synthetic hair and small portions of my own hair, I signal both racial and gender identity markers through colour and length/cut in reference to Asian representation within entertainment media.
This work is particularly build upon silk organza from my mother, and cotton thread from my maternal grandmother. Collectively, these materials emphasize the roles of Mother and Wife; By creating the “Wife,” I place myself in the role of “Mother.” Playing on the trope of self-sacrifice and suffering of Chinese Women, this work touches on the irony of creating a bridal veil for an Object which can never be wed; despite all my hard-work or how exquisite the product of Labour is, my Labour is futile as it ends without marriage. Thus begins the process of “Object feminization” reflexivity - my futile Labour becomes the feminized Object, which I then identify with
bitter and pithy
acrylic on canvas, 30.4 cm x 40.6 cm , 2023.
Direct expressions of Love or affection within the Cantonese diaspora are uncommon; Instead, an unsolicited plate of cut fruit for another is a common gesture of Love. Pomelo in particular have tough skin and bitter pith with stubborn paper-like membranes, requiring intensive Labour to cut and peel before serving, yet this pomelo remains pure - unpeeled and preserved in its decorative packaging, ready to be peeled away and devoured.
Drawing inspiration from queer literature and sexual praxis, this work touches on the notion of masochistic recognition and kink/fetish subcultures, and the tension of cultural hybridity. The sinicized and feminized Object is subjected to the escapist sexual fantasies of Westerners, yet this projected exotic fantasy conflicts with the “Traditional” Chinese virtues of purity and piousness which restrain Women’s sexual agency.
mercy, my mother
acrylic on canvas, 30.4 cm x 40.6 cm, 2024.
The societal expectation for a Woman to marry and birth a son reiterates and emphasizes Confucius cisheteromisogyny, relegating Women to the domestic sphere solely for child rearing, while prioritizing male lineage. Statues depicting Guanyin with Child are intended to bless fertility, give luck for pregnant women, and provide protection during Labour. This particular statue was obtained from my maternal grandmother after her death in 2018, and had bore witness to generations of child rearing.
Through recognition and connection to feminine sacrifice, I was overwhelmed with an intense sense of sympathy for lonely Guanyin - diligently protecting the baby, all alone in a storage box. Touching upon epigenetic memory, the autonomy of Objects, and familial piety, I acknowledge and the divine feminine embodiment of mercy as more than a porcelain tchotchke. Through this portrayal, I show reverence and honour my grandmother, my mother, and Guanyin herself, to alleviate my guilt for benefitting from maternal sacrifices.
tight-knit yet far apart
installation view
(detail) ball of yarn
(detail) incomplete scarf
acrylic yarn on galvanized steel nails, various dimensions (approx. approx. 14 cm x 14 cm), 2024.
The relationship between my Cantonese/Canadian identity is literally built upon the railroad spike and textile Labour. Descending from Cantonese migrant workers, this work touches on the proximity of culture within diaspora; articulating personal struggles with language resurgence, cultural practices, and familial & ancestral dis/connections. This in-progress textile exemplifies the Labour required to maintain my own ties with cultural identity within diaspora. Each moment spent not practicing language, food practices, or ancestral veneration puts me at risk of being chewed apart and swallowed whole by the Western-colonial assimilating machine.
please help yourself
hand embroidered cotton thread on dried clementine peel and fresh clementine in mesh bag, various dimensions (approx. 4 cm x 4 cm), 2024.
Through visible repair and mending, the single clementine peel holds space for the lost and discarded, contrasted against the collection of whole and fresh clementines. Using the damaged flesh of the fruit to demonstrate the futility of “self-improvement” for neurodivergent and, more broadly, disabled individuals. Addressing dis/ability, desirability, and isolation, this piece articulates the meticulous tidying of outward appearance and the futile nature of “fitting in.”.
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