Insects Waken

One of the twenty-four solar terms in the traditional East Asian calendar, Jingzhe marks the awakening of nature as winter gives way to spring.

When the first thunder of spring breaks across the sky, moisture rises and hibernating insects awaken. They emerge from the depths of the earth, passing through layers of stone and soil as they return to the world above.

Inside the spherical cocoons, transformation is already underway. Delicate wings and new forms gradually emerge, while the butterfly’s ascent is captured in a sequence of movements reminiscent of storyboard frames. The air is filled with the vibrations of thunder and the surge of rain. Droplets strike the ground and burst outward like flowers in bloom. At the center, a rhinoceros beetle spreads its wings as it rides the wind, echoing the golden, rounded insect forms below and evoking the extraordinary transformation of metamorphosis.

Then, in the instant the thunder resounds, all the turmoil and restlessness are suspended in time.

Throughout my creative process, I have been fascinated by the condensation of time. Scenes I have observed in nature and images born from my imagination overlap and intertwine, replaying themselves before my eyes. It is as if I hold a remote control in my hand, freely shifting between movement and stillness until I finally press the pause button.

At that moment, the wind falls still and the ripples of water seem to hover suspended in the air. The restlessness buried deep within is brought to the surface and released, carried away with the scattering insects.