As my mural board displays, I tried to investigate a wide range of topics when searching for possible thesis proposals. I found myself primarily interested in committing something that deals with both the digital and the real space and that facilitates human connection.

Here are the three projects that appeared particularly interesting in my initial search, each of which inspired a project idea.

The first project I came across was Missing Masterpieces of Samsung. It utilizes a Samsung TV as the display for a curated list of missing mastery paintings. The project sheds light on the issue of ownership of cultural artifacts. I was confronted with the question: How does the concept of ownership change in a digital, domestic space? The idea of cultural ownership made me pivot my attention to stolen artifacts during the colonial periods. My research tells that although many museums started returning some cultural artifacts to their native lands, the process has been particularly slow, and some have entirely halted. I’m interested in working with a project that advocates for the return of cultural artifacts along with the stolen cultural identities and memories. One prototype is to build a hologram 3D reconstruction of the artifacts, which will hopefully be displayed in a museum of the country that the artifact is native to.

The second project that left a mark on my search was Nextdoor, a neighborhood-based online community. I found that, particularly during the pandemic, community apps like Nextdoor in great need as they bring people together, cultivate a sense of belonging, and inspire important, local-based social initiatives. As rapid urbanization and demographic changes have been taking place in cities and rural areas, it has been increasingly challenging to build a robust, mutually-supportive community. However, large-scale challenges such as climate change, economic recessions, public health crises demand a community’s effort to solve. Disheartened by the distant social relations in our modern-day societies, I am pitching my second project idea as a neighborhood-focused platform that brings neighbors together with meaningful exchanges. Perhaps we could start with small things, like sharing with a neighbor a ripe tomato that one would not use, a brand-new kindle that sat around for months, etc.

My last project idea is an art installation that endeavors to cultivate awareness around senior citizens and their sharings to younger generations. It will be a soft, human-sized shape that turns warmer and into a brighter color once a person hugs it. The hug will also trigger the telling of a story that the elderly share, particularly to the younger generations. I came up with this project idea as I listened to my grandmother telling me her heartbreaking stories during WWII. I saw and felt resilience, optimism, and bravery in her voice and her eyes. Sadly, senior citizens like my grandmother are among the most vulnerable yet most ignored populations during the pandemic. Yet, they have so much to share and teach the younger generations. As China is stepping into a rapidly aging society, it is imperative to pay close attention, care, and respect to the elderly. The project will need further narrowing down to a specific geographical, ethnographic group where interviews will occur.