Full Moon, St. Francis House of Peace, Philadelphia, PA
Public art project with Meg Saligman, Project Home and the Chinatown Development Corporation. The project was inspired a famous Tang Dynasty poem Quiet Night Thought about the concepts of moon and home in Chinese culture. A Full Moon is synonymous with family reunion as it represents when all family members are together at home (during Mid-Autumn Festival). The poem was projected onto a tiled moon on the wall.
Hutongs are narrow streets or alleys common to Northern Chinese cities, particularly Beijing. Hutong also refers to the neighborhood. The floor pattern was inspired from a neighborhood in Shanghai in the French Concession. We inserted an ancient Chinese coin symbol that was used for drainage. I took those photos in Hunan province in an ancient courtyard. The ancient coin symbol represents prosperity and wealth. The circle can represent heaven and the square within, earth.
Artwork toiled on the windows and lanterns was created during workshops to create paper lanterns with the Chinatown Learning Center, Project Home, Rowan Homes and the On Lok Senior Center in Chinatown.
Pull on the Sun Pull handle and the door drops down and reveals a pop-up scene. The pulls represent the strength and brilliance of the sun, to complement the outside moon imagery. Five pop-up apothecary drawers represent different idyllic landscapes in China that represent Home, and the final drawer features foods from different regions of China that can be found in our own Chinatown.
Our Home Apothecary
Participants were prompted to draw things related to the concepts of home, safety, family, celebration, fortune, lucky objects, etc.- anything that relates to a joyful and fulfilling existence with friends and family.
