​Virtuous Maidens expands on a series of work exploring the effects of gender and racial stereotypes on individual self-perception. From the docile white lotus to the domineering dragon lady, costumes trace a history of representation in literature and on screen. Dressing up to embody these characters provides an opportunity to reclaim her image and rewrite her story. The video parodies imperial palace dramas centred on the power struggles of concubines whose value is solely determined by her relationship to the emperor. In playing with the trope of female competition, the work considers the notion of empowerment defined by winning and losing that normalises the zero-sum logic of meritocracy.

 

Cinematography by Max Bloching; sound by Oliver Mounir.

Actors: Corrine Chan; Eunjo Lee; Jamie Wei; KC Poh; Tianyi Zhou; Yiping Pan.

​

​