The Kitchen

The Kitchen is a sculptural installation made up of 15 columns of plastic bags filled with food ingredients and spices. The original material consists of used plastic bags, with each column crafted from sewn-together fragments of these bags. Using food as the primary medium in the project, I reconstructed the essential parts of a Chinese kitchen. The spices, and dry goods are preserved and hung from above, and suffuse the air with the smell of rice, star anise, Sichuan pepper, garlic, and chili powder. 

Deforming the plastic bags in both weight and size, the tension between needing to cook for one’s family and feeling burdened with such labor fills the space. The kitchen is a place where domestic laborers home skills, dedicate time, and invest emotion, all to sustain their families’ well-being.