Xiwang

co-creator

A participatory project developed through a cross-cultural exchange between Chinese and Australian artists explored how mothers are shaped by culture and their marriages - and how this shapes us.

One participant and her mother exchanged messages for one year, to say what could not be said in any other way.

Xiwang [Hope] began with extracts from their messages and the remedies they shared. A “menu” in the form of an interactive installation, shared the significance and health benefits of various seeds and spices. Participants contributed their own “honest messages” to their mothers in invisible ink and sealed it in a jar along with relevant spices.

Collaborators: Luping Chen, Marcia Ferguson, Ruifang Sun, Mengia Wang,

Seeds, recycled jars, rice paper, card, lemons, iron, ironing board, inked brush pens

Photos: the artists