Kings, Dukes, Generals, Ministers
Kings, Dukes, Generals, Ministers: Moongate series, 2022
Recycled Glass, Steel, Wood, Plaster, Perspex
The name of the Kings, Dukes, Generals, Ministers series comes from a Chinese proverb:
"Kings, dukes, generals, ministers are made and not born.”
This body of work, like the proverb, explores underestimated and overlooked heroes. With themes of potential, sustainability and actualization, it looks to recycled materials as characters on a journey to transformation. Branching from the overarching Kingdom, Dukes, Generals, Ministers (AKA Jade Series) are miniseries of Divine Beasts, Moongates, and Historical Artefacts.
Historical artefacts
AXE: The Weight of Battle 2022
Cast Recycled Glass, Steel, Perspex, Concrete
49 x 53 x 15.5cm
3200 years ago in China there was a remarkable woman named FuHao: she was a queen, priestess and the greatest war general of her time. Today, as women fight for equal representation and bodily autonomy, Axe: The Weight of Battle encapsulates the strength of women. A facsimile of the bronze original found in FuHao’s tomb, it is wondrous to imagine such a large and heavy object once welded by a woman in battle.
divine beasts
moongates
Moongate I, II, III 2022
Cast Recycled Glass, Steel, Perspex, Wood, Plaster
Windows to an optimistic future, the jade Moongate series reclaim industrial detritus to create metaphorical portals, showing a world beyond a throw-away society. Reshaping broken window glass into jade moongates (Chinese garden windows) using an innovative casting method, transformation and perspective are key themes of Moongate. These jade windows don’t frame specific garden sceneries but encourage the audience to imagine a green utopia for themselves when they peer through them, a utopia that might be shaped by the transformation of recycled materials.
* Moongate I is a finalist for the Greenway Art Prize 2022
* Moongate II is a finalist for the SWAP Art Prize 2022
* Moongate III is a finalist for the National Capital Art Prize 2022