The Gweilo 鬼老 refugium

Gweilo 鬼老 = Cantonese for 'Pale Ghost'. 'Pale Ghost' denotes to a person of Anglo-Saxon origin, predominantly used to refer to the expatriate population of Hong Kong. The term is not derogatory and is used by both Chinese and Anglo-Saxon communities alike.

This artwork represents a sense of inertia pertaining to the constraints of cultural cycles, the restlessness of life, and the suspension of time, all in a veneer of the chinese cross-cultural composure that is the Hong Kong Bird Market. The birds of Hong Kong and their contained form implies alienation and a denial of communication between cultures, while their fragile suspension and enclosed placement suggest a frustrated but silent form of existence. Inter-cultural dependence is what the title imparts upon the viewer and the concept of unfavourable conditions under colonisation and the corruption cultural traditions. This piece forces the viewer to reflect on dominating stereotypes and the cruel entrapment of areas of the West and East that surround cultural paradigms. The watercoloured Moleskine, captivated within the bamboo cage, deftly combines the aesthetics of craft of Japanese paper cutting, with the The Gweilo refugium.This artwork represents a sense of inertia pertaining to the constraints of cultural cycles, the restlessness of life, and the suspension of time, all in a veneer of the chinese cross-cultural composure that is the Hong Kong Bird Market. The birds of Hong Kong and their contained form implies alienation and a denial of communication between cultures, while their fragile suspension and enclosed placement suggest a frustrated but silent form of existence. Inter-cultural dependence is what the title imparts upon the viewer and the concept of unfavourable conditions under colonisation and the corruption cultural traditions. This piece forces the viewer to reflect on dominating stereotypes and the cruel entrapment of areas of the West and East that surround cultural paradigms. The watercoloured Moleskine, captivated within the bamboo cage, deftly combines the aesthetics of craft of Japanese paper cutting, with the language of Italian, Chinese and British textile patterns alongside a myriad of cultural imagery.

The piece represents a cultural menagerie, suggesting that in order to understand distinct cultural paradigms, one must perceive them together and in a certain context. Thus the Gweilo Refugium critiques the universalising tendencies of contemporary notions of culture.