week 1

So this brings me back to questioning race and religion- especially in regards to my own background, as a Chinese ethnic living in Indonesia. Actually this theme has been quite prominent in my work, especially since I return back to Jakarta in 2013. I have started questioning- in fact being extremely critical to how common racial prejudice is within my paternal family. And recently having more direct relationship and discussion with friends coming from different ethnicity and religious background, get me back into thinking of a larger picture- 

immigration and who owns a certain land. who came first, does it matter (ironically i believe it is in regards to popular opinion due to the fact that discrimination exists based on this speculation alone)

Coming back to my own personal identity, and I believe it is something which Malaysians go through as well- is that the (another) speculation that Chinese living in South East Asia (or maybe within Malaya Peninsula- with which my works tend to be more focused around) are relatively more wealthy than their non-Chinese counterpart. I personally believe that it is a nonsensical statement but this is the perception people tend to project me with back in Jakarta.

So this brings me back to another subject I can relate with Cheng Ho

4. Wealth (which is kind of related to no.2) and power

What's great being in social media is that information and opinions are circulated in a relatively active pace and I found an article that makes a connection to what is currently happening around the world (particularly with inequality and immigration control) to Cheng Ho's expedition. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/500-years-ago-china-destroyed-its-world-dominating-navy-because-its-political-elite-was-afraid-of-a7612276.html

But Angus Deaton, the Nobel Prize-winning Princeton economist, prefers a different theory. In his book "The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality," he argues that the Chinese burned their boats (almost literally) in an attempt to control foreign trade.  The Treasure Fleet was abandoned at the urging of the political elite inside the Emperor's civil service who had become alarmed at the rise of a newly rich merchant class. "The emperors of China, worried about threats to their power from merchants, banned oceangoing voyages in 1430, so that Admiral Zheng He's explorations were an end, not a beginning," Deaton writes.But Angus Deaton, the Nobel Prize-winning Princeton economist, prefers a different theory. In his book "The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality," he argues that the Chinese burned their boats (almost literally) in an attempt to control foreign trade.  The Treasure Fleet was abandoned at the urging of the political elite inside the Emperor's civil service who had become alarmed at the rise of a newly rich merchant class. "The emperors of China, worried about threats to their power from merchants, banned oceangoing voyages in 1430, so that Admiral Zheng He's explorations were an end, not a beginning," Deaton writes.

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In other words, are we looking at another Treasure Fleet moment right now, and failing to see the danger of elite-driven rentier mercantilism?

Now referring back to my older works (maybe to be more precise the first work I created when I returned back) was in regards to family's racial identity and obsession with wealth. (The work can be found here.I was looking at the image of coins and the child-like craft of frottaging interests me. I think it brings back images of wealth multiplication- which process in itself is very questionable, ethics in economy- among many. (and as usual, coincidentally, it is almost like the situation I had in 2013- I came back to a place where I used to live in; and surprisingly Rimbun Dahan is located close to where I used to stay and study)

So I started to look into the possibilities of images behind Malaysian Ringgit coins (and dang, I actually could not find one that is visually interesting on the new coins).

I think the kites can be potentially be an active pattern in this project- it brings upon a lot of possibilities.

Conceptually, it is also relevant in building the narrative of the sea voyager (Wau Bulan, Wau Kapal, Wau Barat, Wau Seri Negeri). The bird-like shape is also interesting- something which I have been hinting very subtly in my works too.

Additionally, I also find the element of the kite in Dikir Barat, a group performance very much identified as Malayan culture, in particularly the east coast Kelantan.
http://ww1.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2007&dt=0128&pub=utusan_malaysia&sec=sastera&pg=sa_01.htm&arc=hive

The kite reminds of of the slang, go fly kite which can mean go fuck yourself or mind your own business or go and play with yourself (I am kind of absorbing it rather literally here, apology). I think it can be manipulated in a way that it can provide a new narrative towards the concerns of Cheng Ho as stated above. It is playful, visually stunning and culturally relevant.

Then it reminds me of a character in a manga by Nobuyuki Anzai titled Flame of Recca (1995-2002) -> again, a reference to my past, root, childhood maybe?

The character is called Koganei Kaoru (fun fact: he is the youngest in the gang too) and he carries a weapon called Kōgan Anki (鋼金暗器 Golden Blade) which is kind of like a puzzle. It has many forms (although the manga only showed 5+1 ultimate forms)