I am from China, a country of secrets that receives a great amount of criticism on its human rights practices. I spent my adulthood in the US, a country of freedom that is filled with truth and lies.

 

There is a great wall lying in between China and the rest of the world, whether it is the physical barrier to travel or the virtual firewall. There is also a great wall lying inside China that is built by generational public secrets, censoring and self-censoring. Even if information penetrates the walls, it is mediated or censored. 

 

While living in both countries, with contradicting voices and obscured facts, my mind is constantly bothered with the questions of “what to believe '' and the moral responsibilities and the identity issues that come afterwards. I keep thinking about the history of the Third Reich and the Empire of Japan: How much did an ordinary individual know? How much could they know?

 

I use my work as a tool to dissect this kind of anxiety as a Chinese person. I trace my dis-utopian moments when things shake a little bit. I dive into the distant whispering under the awkward silence. I crack up the mirrors and caress the scattered reflections.