DayDayCook (2020-2023)
The project began during the outburst of COVID in March 2020. I found myself no longer able to go around freely to take photos, cooking at home became an important part of my daily living. One day as I was preparing dinner, the open eggshell in my hand caught my attention. I was fascinated by the beauty of its form and started to question, “how much recyclable food scraps do we throw out each day?”
As of 2018, the amount of food waste accounts for 31% of the municipal solid waste in Hong Kong. According to the statistics published by the Environmental Protection Department, Hong Kong generates approximately 3,565 tonnes of food waste each day. Two-thirds comes from households accounting for 0.32kg/person/day, equivalent to around 4 apples or 6 eggs or one and a half pieces of steak disposed per person per day.
Since then, I began collecting food scraps. I staged them on a spoon to make up a classic Chinese homemade dish, and then photographed it as one bite of a dish. While I create each photo at the corner of my flat, my husband, who is an enthusiastic home cook, would make suggestions for the next “photo dish”. Together we created a variety of “photo dishes” and noted the weight of each “dish”.
In 2021, this series was shortlisted for The Ballarat International Foto Biennale The Fineman New Photography Award (Australia).
Our collaboration evolved further later on. We explored edible food scraps to create new gourmet dishes, embodying the Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi’s concept of “usefulness in the uselessness.” In a similar way, I photographed the food scraps as single bites of a dish, staging them on a pair of chopsticks or a Chinese spoon. I also created images of the newly reinvented gourmet dishes. This work was published as a Chapter in Grandma Grandpa Cook 2 Wastenot Gourmet (2023).
A Taste of Home (2024)
In 2024, our collaboration took an alternative dive, exploring the roots of my husband and his extended family’s relationship with food, by tracing family recipes and their history from their hometown in Shanwei, China.
For this work, I drew inspiration from the Chinese aesthetic of Shanshui in traditional landscape painting, staging food ingredients as landscapes and photographing them. Over four days, I worked in a room with a black backdrop, using ingredients sourced from Shanwei, China. As I arranged the ingredients, I carefully observed the timing, duration, and quality of natural light illuminating them, taking note of how it influenced their appearance. I also monitored each ingredient’s “freshness” window before it dulled and lost vitality. Through this attentive process of selection and positioning, I waited for the “perfect” moment to capture the scene’s energy. Each ingredient was used only once, and no images were re-shot. The essence of the work lies in listening to the rhythm of these elements as they harmonise in that singular moment.
I also created a three-channel video installation, small talk, featuring a snippet of a conversation between my husband and me. While he orally dictates his family recipe, I transcribe it through my own interpretation. By exploring the relationship between family recipes and identity, the work reflects on the meanings of home through diverse familial connections. It also raises questions about the parallels between cultural translation, dietary digestion, and the constantly evolving nature of family dynamics.
This work was commissioned to exhibit at Hong Kong International Photography Festival 2024, Mega Family: Imagining Home.
