Rebirth is the painting that gave new life to the artist’s raw emotions. Here, she harnesses the fluidity and forgiveness of acrylics to embrace the confusion surrounding emotional overdose. The first painting created while recovering from an attempt to escape the weight of existence, the artist found herself floating in the liminal space between life and actually living.
Loosely swaddled and curled in fetal position, she lays helpless and hazy against the grain of her sheets. The background, the suggested bed she lays on, is painted to resemble and features scraps of ikat fabric. Ikat is a traditional weaving technique common in most Asian countries. She uses this ancestral craft to signify the support of community, and the way an individual’s actions are woven into the larger tapestry of society.
Though a huge and diverse region, suicide and mental illness is a shared cultural shame. Conversation about mental issues is only in its infancy in East and Southeast Asia, because societal perception of an individual affects the entire community. By publicly speaking up about her experience through this piece, the artist hopes to encourage openness and acceptance among families and communities for the role they play in an individual’s and each other’s collective healing.