Shayne Phua
Usefully broken II, 2024
Ceramic
11 x 11 x 10 cm
Copyright The Artist
This pair of candle holders are fashioned in the shape of broken bones, referring to the – probably apocryphal – story of the healed femur as marking the emergence of...
This pair of candle holders are fashioned in the shape of broken bones, referring to the – probably apocryphal – story of the healed femur as marking the emergence of human civilization, according to the anthropologist, Margaret Mead. (Refer to Your worthiness comes from your brokenness.) The fragmented bits of bone put Phua in mind of a candle holder; the tendency to draw connections between the shapes of otherwise disparate objects is a trait of her creative imagination. She remarks that being a ceramicist brings it with certain territorial hazards: “These works highlight my tendency to look at the forms of objects as vessels for holding or storage. Maybe is a 3D-maker thing … or simply a ceramic-maker thing, since we work with hollowed pieces.”
Exhibitions
A roast of Asian nine tails topped with broken femur and bile, accompanied by more curious ingredients, 20 July – 1 September 2024, Yeo Workshop, Singapore