Openness, 2014
100% cotton fibers, acid-free Stonehenge 250 gsm, hand cut, 2 layers, installation
184 x 184 x 10 cm

Openness is a two-layer paper-cut. The intuitively hand-cut paper manifests the interplay between two polarities: positive and negative; vertical and horizontal; straight and curved; present and absent; simplicity and complexity; and big and small. That is, the ancient Chinese philosophical term: yin-yang.

‘Openness’, which in Buddhist terms is ‘emptiness’, is the way to the infinite universe. In my practice, the process of paper-cutting is a metaphor; cutting an open space from a solid surface creates an indefinite existence by extending into space. I seek to demonstrate a process of deconstruction and reinvention. This suggests that we should stop resisting, but rather, follow spontaneous changes and act without wilful force in order to achieve harmony.

The cutout is seemingly symmetrical. However, each shape is unique, representing the uniqueness of each individual. Together, the abstract forms create movement, Ch’i in Chinese, releasing a radiant and vital energy from the centre.