As They Gather

As They Gather centers on an elongated dining table, taller and narrower than convention, constructed to disrupt the casual comfort typically associated with communal dining. Covering the surface is a hand-made textile I created in the style of the Bai Jia Bei (百家被), traditionally a quilt pieced together from contributions by many individuals. In my version, the fabric still holds this patchwork sensibility, but fragments of small mirrors are tightly stitched onto it. Each mirror is secured with extremely fine threads that cross and knot beneath the surface, barely visible unless observed closely, forming an intricate web that suggests the quiet pressures and complex reasons that keep people in their place, even when they no longer feel seen.

At the table, the physical distance between seats is minimal, yet the mirror fragments distort and interrupt visibility. Reflections fracture, drift, or disappear, creating the sensation of being surrounded by others while unable to truly perceive them. Through its altered scale, hand-sewn textile, and delicately constrained mirrors, the installation reflects on how closeness can mask emotional distance, and how relationships are often held together by fragile, tangled forces that remain unseen but deeply felt.