Lisa Wang
At the Table
Prompt: For Bridge 1, you’ll be asked to curate a collection of objects that have intimate stories and meanings for you; and you will put the powers of your newfound observation and newfound artistic toolkit to use! Select objects you’d like to explore, their physical forms and emotional qualities. Develop a background and environment that can be fantastical, realistic or abstract. Your project should tell the story about: Who are you becoming? How can you express the personal shifts of your journey from your past to your present to your future? How does your composition of objects relate to your present moment, your past and perhaps your future? How can you tell the story visually of time, mood and personality? What kind of story does your background and environment tell? (Remember: physical, emotional, spiritual qualities) How can you integrate the lessons from Studio class into your project, especially related to conveying your own point-ofview, ‘intense interest’ and style as an artist-author?
“Dining” is a very important part of my family’s routine — we usually talk about our day and enjoy each other’s company. For that reason, I normally feel the most relaxed when I’m at the dinner table — it’s a way to escape the harsh reality of the world. In my work, I want to convey the sense of belonging I felt when I sat at the dinner table.
In the foreground, the viewer sees a huge dining table with various dishes. I used a deep, saturated blue to translate the feeling of calmness and tranquility. The food displayed on the table is my imaginary feast, featuring dishes my dad cooked when I was back in Taiwan, as well as the meals I prepared for myself here in New York. I used a blue-ish tone for all the colors on the table to create a sense of completeness. Four chairs are positioned along the table to symbolize the four stages of my life: the comfort I felt at home, the rigidity of being a student, the freedom of being an artist, and the uncertainty of the future. I used adjacent colors that transition from purple to red and yellow to symbolize progression. The chairs are disproportionately enlarged to emphasise my “presence” in each stage.
In the background, I used various sizes of Sharpie to create lines with sharp edges, creating a conflicting contrast to the foreground. These lines symbolize the “reality” I have to face when I leave the dinner table. Different boldness and directions of lines are used to emphasize the difficulties I will encounter when I leave this safe space. Through the transition of colors to bright green on the fourth chair, I hope to always find a place where I belong, even when facing struggles in life.