Evelynn Yijia Chen

I was inspired by the ceramic sound of a Céleste Boursier-Mougenot piece, Clinamen (2012). The sound reminded me of many childhood memories spent around the dining table, and how our family always went out to “drink tea”(饮茶, a Cantonese term). It is something I miss dearly now that I am away from home. Working from the prompt “reclaiming a space” and our class keyword “body”, I wanted to emulate the space through sound components and how the body interacts with the space instead of creating the actual space itself. I also wanted the materials themselves to create the sound. Hands are very gestural and convey a lot when observed closely. The 4 pairs of hands represents my family of 4. Each one of these hands are holding an invisible piece of cutlery, chopsticks, a bowl, or pouring tea for someone else. They are attached to a circular acrylic piece, reminiscent of a Lazy Susan at these restaurants for tea. When the viewer spins the piece, the clay hands hit against the class jar and makes a sound similar to that of the clinging of ceramic cutlery.