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Time Capsules

An imaginary fantasy world and safe space have become the central theme of my works. This world can be described as a garden, as it’s a personal space that can exceed beyond physical and imaginary limits. After the loss of my paternal grandfather in 2017, maternal grandmother in 2018, and my father in 2019, art became my coping mechanism, to process and express my emotions, feelings and thoughts.

This garden started off as a forest, an imaginary place for a story to be told. As time passed, with some mental venturing and world building of this vast world, I’ve come to realize it is my own garden, planted with my flowers, and built to suit various terrains and many personalized features that I find comfort in. It has become a safe and comfortable space that I’ve nurtured and tended to.

I have shared my world though my works in various mediums, from paintings to ink and even rotoscope animation. But it only gives a glimpse into what my world is. Going back to the root and core of the garden, I’m on a journey to understand why I chose a garden to grieve, and why I hold on to this garden so dearly.

I came to realize that my desire and need to create and capture a moment or a piece of my garden, was to memorialize the bond I shared with my late father. This special bond is the core memory that shaped my life as I was growing up and also the person I’ve now become. Core memories is a term used for “moments in our lives that shape our personalities”.

My fascination with nature and its conservation has contributed to my world building, all of which stemmed from the activities I shared with my father during my childhood. Without fail, every weekend we went on father-daughter dates where he’d take me to the zoo, parks, gardens, butterfly and bird parks, aquariums, museums and science centres.

This curiosity, fascination and appreciation, came from all the hours my father dedicated to teaching me about the world, its wonders and its history. The beauty and appreciation for flora and fauna has greatly influenced my life and art practice. Thus, it was only natural to build a garden of comfort when I needed a space for my time to grieve.

Using a sculptural and installation method of storytelling and world building, my works act as a time capsule. To capture a moment, even if it was the last time, because time is precious. Creating works with butterflies, these beautiful fast- flying creatures, to capture and freeze them in time holds a significance to a moment, and if time could just stop for me to have another moment with my father.

In love and loss, we will always wish for more time or if we could make time stop. By creating this project, it has helped to bring closure to my grief and my ability to open up and share the bond I had with my father. I wish I could spend one last trip to the museum with him but time moves on, and by making my own exhibits, I have encased this special bond of ours until the end of time.