My paternal grandparents Fong Fay Kwong 鄺 惠 光 and Mah Shoot Li - aka Shirley Fong 馬 雪 麗 are both from the Guangdong province in China and subsequently imbued their lives with traditional Southern Chinese philosophies, one of which was my grandpa's expansive forestry plants in the living room of their Dalhousie house.
The video was made specifically for me and my sister who would play in the backyard garden and the living room as kids, as both a tribute and honour to my grandparents and their plants. Venerative practices of ancestral worship are extremely important to Chinese culture, and my Grandparents, and this is why I and my sister have our paternal family's last name Fong 鄺. As my grandma explained to my mother when my sister was born and named “King-Fong” it was important that we had the last name “Fong” so that our ancestors could find us.
Chiang Yee explains this in his book The Chinese Eye where he references the Taoist hermit and landscape painter Tsung Ping who emphasized an “attitude of ‘reciprocity’ to nature…nature is in infinite change, and shows herself in different Garments to different eyes”. (Yee 74)
The ink was created in reference to traditional Chinese ink techniques, taking care not to incorporate the burning as ash which is associated with keeping spirits away in aspects of ink creation. Instead I created the ink by mixing the clay with water and the decaying leaves, as well as different acrylic inks, and ointments of insect incense (unburned) and tiger balm (as a medium like thick substance). Insect incense is a curled incense that is used to ward off insects, and traditionally put under beds at night.
