Dragon

Designer-mentee: Adonian Chan
Collective Master-mentors: Chelsia Lau, Kan Tai-keung
Lead Curator: Marisa Yiu

L 56 x D 21 x H 20 cm
Resin, with metal base

Why did humans create the mythical creature dragon? What is the essence of a dragon? What would a dragon look like in the 21st century?

Human’s relationship to nature is complex. Devastating natural phenomena make life uncertain, while nature provides substances that sustain humanity. The relationship is both fearful and reverent. Humans need a substantial subject to settle this tension, hence they designed dragons to represent the relationship. Dragon is a synthesis drawn from features from the animals humans were familiar with, to represent the intangible, the unknown. However unlike any animals, Dragon is an open concept, there is no definite feature, size or attribute, even the number of claws could vary according to the need of the design to represent hierarchies. The essence that motivates humans to design dragons is fear and reverence.

“Dragon of Our Time” is deliberately devoid of any physical features of a dragon, and uses the Chinese character for “fear” to create three “gemstones”, which are associated with supernatural power. The forms were inspired by the peculiar geographic landscape of Po Pin Chau in Sai Kung, a homage to the magnificent work of nature, and the heritage geology of site and context.

Long Xing by Chelsia Lau (2012)

“Long Xing” incorporates the audacious essence of the running script (Xing Shu) in Chinese calligraphy; the sculpture precipitates elegant simplicity with dignified vigour of style. Strong brushstrokes outline the gallant features of “Long Xing” allowing each viewing angle to create a different visual experience.