Soonhwa Kang’s Vessels of Remembrance originates from Korean and Japanese commemorative traditions. Rooted in East Asian ancestral practices, the work reflects a worldview in which memory, ritual, and care are central to how we relate to one another and to the earth. The hand-built ceramic forms—primarily elevated, bird-like vessels—are arranged on a long table that evokes a ceremonial setting. Visitors are invited to take part in this ritual by writing or painting their reflections in ink on rice paper, which are then included in a closing burial ceremony.

Her ceramic objects function as quiet mediators between presence and absence—they echo remembrance, continuity, and the unseen souls that surround us. In doing so, they invite stillness, reflection, and the imagining of new futures shaped by the past. By creating space for silence, contemplation, and collective participation, Soonhwa encourages a slower, more intentional way of being—one that resists extractive logics and embraces cyclical thinking.

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