Hidden Treasure Soap (2020) Spicy verbena and geranium scented handmade soap with 14K rose gold 1/5 carat champagne diamond pin. Hand-carved engineered marble base. Edition of 4. 4.5 x 4.5 x 4.5 inches Hidden Treasure Soap is a limited-edition, functional art that encourages one to wash their hands with pleasure, and once the soap is diminished, a diamond gold pin can finally be discovered. After the cleaning function is expended, the engineered marble base along with the golden jewel can also be displayed as wall art.

Contemplation of Light, “Hashtag” (left), “Ampersand” (right)

Mendsmith Project To commemorate with creativity and to grief with joy, I will be doing a live-crafting project in Mercury 20 Gallery from August 1st to September 7th. It all started when a dear friend lost her husband and all that remained was his wedding ring. Given my background as a jeweler, I felt I could do more than offer heartfelt condolences; rather, I could use my skills to take both my friend and her partner’s wedding rings and forge them into something new, something she could hold onto as an eternal representation of love long after the marriage vows had broken. The ring I created for her—a combination of the couple’s wedding rings that set her ring inside her partner’s ring, fixing them in an eternal embrace—is just the start of a project I hope will enable others to heal through the repurposing of these symbols of love and commitment. Thus, the Mendsmith Project was born. To participate this project, please prepare to bring two jewelry pieces or other small objects of personal significance you would like to be “mended”, one belongs to you and one belongs to the loved one you lost. During the scheduled consultation, we would begin with your stories and memories of the loved one you lost. It would be helpful if you can bring some photos, letters, or other artifacts to help me understand the special relationship you had with your loved one. I would then work with you to create a concept and design a new piece of jewelry for you with the two objects you brought as the material. The finished piece will be given back to the participants free of charge. To reserve your free Mendsmith consultation, please email to info@studiodong.com. Limited Availability. I will be making the piece in the gallery during the gallery’s opening hours so the participants and visitors may watch the work as it unfolds. Consultation: Thursdays, noon to 6pm (August 1st, 8th, 16th, 22nd, 29th, and September 5th) Mendsmithing: Fridays and Saturdays, noon to 6pm

HEAVEN 2019, 14’ x 14’ x 10’ H, Mixed media The inspiration behind this piece, a mirror enclosure dappled with clouds that is designed to fragment and obscure the reflections of those who enter the space, is to communicate the themes that undergird tradition depictions of the heavens in Chinese art. Rather than treat heaven as a religious concept, my installation HEAVEN instead posits a cosmic realm where the self dissolves along the fragments of other selves into a greater spiritual existence untethered from the individual ego.

WATERS 2019, 21” x 84" x 21" H, Mixed media Unlike mountains, which are stationary, I decided that WATERS needed to undulate in order to mimic the wave motifs found in traditional depictions of oceans and seas. To that end, I placed a shimmering, scaled fabric over a motorized paddles to create wave-like movements. Small glowing objects, sit on the surface of the “water,” representing islands. The mirrored interior of the scroll case created infinite reflection, to echo the endless expanse of the ocean along a limitless horizon.

MOUNTAINS 2019, 28” x 24" x 65" H, Mixed media Mountains are a frequent subject of Chinese ink paintings, traditionally displayed in the form of scrolls that unfold vertically. I have taken the mountain landscape and drawn them on an floating “scroll,” suspending it in a glass case with a reflective interior to multiply the pieces infinitely, creating the illusion of an endless mountain range that appears and disappears as the scrolls shift within their vessel.

EARTH 2019, 58” x 58" x 86" H, Mixed media The inspiration behind this piece is the tethering effect of an ominous force: gravity, as represented by the levitating cubes that rotate endlessly above the “fabric of space and time”, complete with depressions where the gravity is meant to be heaviest. The earth is traditionally associated with the corporeal and material, a sharp contrast to the cosmic and spiritual lightness found in the heavens. The endless rotation of the cubes mirrors the planet’s rotation on its axis as well as the endless cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth.

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