Qipao (what does it mean to be a daughter?)

2024

A project that is very much still in progress and with potential to expand, the "Qipao Project" is one I started at the Get LIT!! Themed Visual Art residency at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.

As a child, I never owned a qipao. When I was young, I didn't think of it as a cultural symbol - it was just a pretty dress. I loved my mom's wedding photos from the 90s, and I wanted to wear a qipao like her when I grew up.

The symbol and history of the qipao is complex. This simple garment represents many things - Chinese culture, emancipation, the sexuality of Chinese women, modernization, empowerment, and diaspora. This project aims to visualise and express the nuances of my identity - what does it mean to be a Chinese immigrant? A Chinese woman? A Chinese daughter of Chinese parents? My body is represented by the dress, by the expectations placed upon Chinese women, especially in the diaspora. It is very much still in progress, and I have plans to embroider the silk and add other surface elements.