It was like any other day, slightly breezy slightly warm. I had met her a couple of times but we never really talked much. But that day was different. She was witty and charming, looked happy.
We talked about this before, she told me about her matter right after she asked me if I ever experienced the same thing. A question that was rather bizarre in my ear. But I guess people are more familiar with this matter nowadays, like getting a cold. But not when or where I grew up. It was something you hide, something you should not talk about. And yet I had a question in my head, why it was not easy back then or why is it too easy now? or Is it?
At one point she said, “ you know I told my doctor, I wish I had a butthole in my head so I can get everything out, like a chimney..”
I smiled. I could not say much but I knew it was true. I knew there are countless people out there, a mother, a father, a daughter, a son, a brother, a sister, a wife, a husband, a friend, a loved one, a human being who wishes he or she could say or could hear her or him say “I need a chimney in my head”.
This ceramic vessel is part of the art series titled the Flower Picker created in 2022. The theme inspired by Bali's Island life aims to shed light on everyday life, the people we meet, the emotions we encounter, the joy, the mundane, and the struggle. Each exists and creates a beautiful color pattern.
"Everybody needs a lil kind of chimney" is an attempt to bring awareness to a mental health issue that has perforated into today's modern living.