Title: The other half of the Sky - Video portraits, Installation view, 2009, 4 min 30 sec loop

Format: LCDs in wooden boxes

This video installation includes eight family members of women in the Mosuo matriarchal society of Lugo Lake, situated in rural western China.

In this society, women are the main source of power in the family structure.

With the opening of the closed territories in the late 1980’s the Mosuo women are suddenly being thrust into the technological chaos of the 21st century; their traditional ways are being challenged by an unnatural and abrupt transition. My goal is to emphasize the paradigm shift from the old to new world sensibilities. As the sitter is asked to stand still and look at me with no movement, the meeting of our eyes through the lens creates a cultural bridge: an entrance to the eternal feminine body and psyche as it balances past and present, tradition and modernity.

Title: The other Half of the Sky - Crossroad portraits, 2009

duration 17 min 37 sec, Installation dimensions variable

Crossroad intersection in Rooster Village Ginming, Muslim village in Yunnan Province, China