Now, very rarely do Chinese people invite guests into their home -- the home is a sanctuary, a very private place, a realm of safety and security. However, on the occasion that you are given the privilege to visit their home, it's a respectful custom to bring with you a small token of appreciation. I figured, since China will be welcoming me into their country for an entire semester, it would only be right to bring along something that represents a piece of me -- a piece of culture unique to my life -- as a kind gesture of my appreciation.
So at the start of summer vacation I began working on a series of miniature, hand-thrown bowls that I fired in my kiln (a.k.a My Hot Little Nugget) to give to the people and the land that will inevitably be teaching me over the coming months. Art is a powerful medium and wields the power to shrink a massive world by connecting people through a universal language.
Documenting the travels of my bowls as they trek across the mountains of Tibet, touch the hands of a tai chi chuan master, plod across the ancient stones of the Great Wall, or respectfully hold a portion of chrysanthemum tea, I hope to explore exactly how art can bridge two very different cultures in a time when their futures appear to be so intertwined.
Where will they go? I can happily say I'm not entirely sure. How many hands will they touch? I hope many.
One thing I can say with confidence: they've stopped spinning in circles; they're headed straight for China. . .
