mirror of a fleeting breath
2024 / pastel, Chinese ink, digital animation / 1400 x 3360mm
This large-format artwork, an amalgamation of handwritten Chinese characters, traditional ink painting, and digital animation, presents the moon not as a celestial body, but as a mirror that reflects our subconscious and unexplored inner landscapes. The choice of Chinese characters is deliberate, aiming to engage a local Singaporean audience in a unique way. Rather than conveying immediate meaning, the text becomes a texture—a visual and emotional experience that invites the viewer to feel the flow and expression of the handwriting before attempting comprehension. This deliberate delay in reading reflects the layered complexity of the subconscious, where understanding is not always instantaneous but emerges through deeper reflection.
The juxtaposition of ancient Chinese history, literature, astrology, modern cultural references with this moon metaphor expresses the timeless relationship between ideologies, events, and popular culture. Just as the sun and moon exist in a dynamic balance—light versus shadow, day versus night—this work reflects duality: the conscious versus the subconscious, the overt versus the subtle. The moon stands as a symbol for the hidden, the reflective, and the nuanced aspects of human experience, offering insights that are often overlooked in the brightness of day.
By merging traditional Chinese art forms with modern digital media, the work also blurs the lines between old and new, reinforcing the idea that history, culture, and personal reflection are all interconnected. The moon, in its phases and mysteries, becomes a vehicle for exploring how the past and present mirror each other in an endless dialogue, much like the eternal dance between the sun and moon. Through this piece, Ching Kai invites viewers to contemplate not only the surface of the artwork, but the deeper layers of history, culture, and personal meaning that reflect back at them.
First exhibited at 《越亮》 "On Nights Like This, The Loneliness Gets Melancholic" by Supper House, at Ann Siang House, 2024.