Tying knots
Tying Knots is a sculptural meditation on intimacy and the quiet weight of familial love. In many Asian cultures, expressions of affection often remain unspoken, yet they exist powerfully within gestures and memories. This piece reflects that nuanced tenderness, evoking the bond between mother and daughter—a connection defined by actions rather than words.
The artist draws on a childhood memory: her mother, dozing on the couch, television murmuring in the background, knitting needles gently held in her hands. This image—seemingly ordinary—has etched itself into the artist’s memory as a symbol of her mother’s presence and care. At the core of the sculpture, the knitting needle head bears the imprint ‘ACE,’ a subtle homage to the artist’s mother, a word of gratitude woven into the piece.
Constructed from shoelaces, Tying Knots considers the gesture of tying laces as an intimate act, one reserved for the wearer or a trusted hand. Here, the shoelace becomes a metaphor for closeness and care, an everyday object that, through touch, transforms into a symbol of connection. The simplicity of the material and form invites viewers to reflect on the small acts that bind us to one another, revealing the profound in the unspoken and the unassuming.