Meditation in the Past《今粵懷古》

By Silka Huang

Artwork Information

Chinese colour on paper 2100 x 600mm

國畫 紙本 2100 x 600mm

My hometown, Guangzhou (Canton), China, has gifted me most of my core memories. I was born and raised there until I came to Australia at 23. Cantonese culture is pragmatic and carpe diem. People are good at having fun, especially finding subtle joy in day-to-day life, which can be reflected in many things, such as the Nanyang-style arcade, flower boats and downtown temples. Hence why I created this painting; it's not a particular place at a specific moment but a collection of my memory puzzles and my feelings when I think about my home.

It's interesting how the buildings look in the painting. The Nanyang arcade appeared in Guangzhou in the 1920s. It is a mix of Western and Cantonese culture birthed after the Opium War, combining the European arcade building and the floating eaves style of Guangzhou. Its roof is decorated with flowers and parapets, and the details are carved with moire, angel, lotus flower, banana leaf and other totems. The ground floor is often a shop, and people live upstairs. In our temperamental climate, people can walk in the pedestrian corridor on the ground floor without getting wet or burnt. The rooftop is the best playground for kids.

Our temples also have a human touch. Most temples are tranquil, but not our downtown temples. Many Cantonese are Buddhist, and with our practical culture, we have built temples right next to wet markets and busy streets. I often see ladies in groups go to the temple after groceries. They pray and chat there; it seems less important whether the temple is quiet enough for you to talk to Buddha. Here, daily necessities, faith and spirit come close to each other, producing an interesting collision.

In the real world, all the places in the painting are disconnected. They are in different districts; some are in the countryside. However, I connect them with the mother river in Guangzhou – the Pearl River. It's fascinating to travel through places in memories and then visualise and build my hometown in my heart. It started with shredded, little moments (like street view in Google Maps), and I gathered more and more; my vision flew higher and higher until I could finally see my hometown from a bird's eye view. When the pen and ink walk on the paper, I feel like a leisurely stroll in the streets like I have always done when I was a child. I hope you can also feel the endless fun.