“The works are woven together through repeated imageries of mooncakes, rabbits, and egg yolks. Emerging from these icons are two female figures from Chinese culture. Depicted with overflowing hair, Chang’e is the heroine in a tragic folk tale who was given immortality at the expense of being separated from her husband. Smiling with rosy cheeks is the iconic face on the cover of a popular makeup powder owned by the artist’s grandmother. known for keeping women’s faces smooth and youthful, the powder is another symbol of the desire for eternal youth. By incorporating the objects of her childhood with these age-old tales, Shayne makes personal timeless narratives – Shedding light on how the myths and beliefs that sustained ancient worlds can be accessible to present times.”
– Gajah Gallery, The New Now II: Vivid & Veiled, Nicole Soriano. 2018
Moon Zeitgeist
2018
Ceramic (white stoneware and coloured slip 1200 degree)
Top Left: 31 x 31 x 1.2 cm Top Right: 31 x 28 x 1.2
Bottom Left: 29 x 28 x 1.2 cm Bottom Right: 31 x 31 x 1.2 cm
Chang’e with Jade Rabbits(White Rabbit) and Moon,
Houyi and 10 Suns as a badge,
Sam Fong Hoi Tong Powder Lady with White Rabbit Candy and Double Coin,
Single Egg Yolk Mooncake in Half
The piece with Single Egg Yolk Mooncake in Half, is my imagination of what the tragic story of Chang’e and Houyi could have been instead: That perhaps, the Elixir that turns Chang’e into an immortal can be split into halves and Chang’e has kept half of the Elixir well for her Husband Houyi. It also represents the sharing of mooncake in slices during the mid-autumn festival.
The piece with Sam Fong Hoi Tong Powder Lady (Famous cosmetic in the 60s 70s) represents one of the items my Grandma placed on the offerings table on the mid-autumn festival. It is the powder my cousin and I played games and drew on each other’s faces with when we were younger. I am not sure if she truly believes in what she said, but my grandma told us that we will have beautiful faces if we use the powder she offered to the Gods, so I would often fantasize about how Chang’e has blessed our powder.
Shayne Phua 