A Trophy for You! is a free community workshop that will guide members of the public throughmaking small, playful sculptures, or trophies, to be gifted to workers at La Pau Sat. This will be a chance for people to use their creativity to show their care for the hawkers who provide them with delicious meals and the staff who maintain their treasured communal eating space. It will tell stories of the heartwarming relationships that form between workers and customers, the kinds of friendships that form over years of small moments: chatting at the counter, pausing at a table to ask after someone’s family, sharing smiles and jokes and the milestones that make up our lives. The intention is not to encourage competition or award honors, but rather to celebrate our human connections. When a trophy is completed, the maker will be asked to present it to the recipient and to document this moment in a photo.
Because I’m based in New York City, I’ve partnered with Hawker! Hawker! artists Yen Phang, Cynthia Delaney Suwito and Veronyka Lau to teach the workshop. That collaboration alone has been a very gratifying process. Check back here after Singapore Art Week for photos of what happened!
Here’s a recent interview where the artist Stephanie Acosta interviews me about similar work and my family ties to Hong Kong and Taiwan.
