Setsugetsuka

For everyone we met last night, (and I apologize if I approached you more than once) here is the FACEBOOK LINK TO EVENT

or you can read the information here:
A Debut exhibition by Ashley Quan, A Fibre major entering her last year at ACAD.

The event will take place at the Engineered Air Theater in the Epcor center (it has its own entrance on 9th avenue SW). Doors will open at 7:00pm and the show will start at 7:30pm. The opening act will be a breakin’ performance by local crew Grim Reminder, followed by the main performance by 5 amazing local dancers, and concluding with a mini fashion show. It is recommended to arrive early as the seats will be first come first serve, and artwork and show information will be arranged around the venue.
Tickets are $10 at the door. There will be a bar located in the lobby, and unlike other theaters you are allowed to bring your drinks into the theater to enjoy during the show or while you are just looking at the displays.

Setsugetsuka is a body of work that has been in process from beginning to end for about two years. The name Setsugetsuka comes from a series of paintings by Tokugawa Nariaki at the LACMA which represent the feeling of this show: in a word, in a phrase, in a poem. Quoted from the plaque accompanying the paintings:
“Setsugetsuka is a timeless Japanese poetic phrase symbolizing three of the four seasons (winter, autumn, and spring). Here ( to view the original paintings follow this link https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQSGkV9DYqWFf3p6qG4o6ESTFAVIXd2L-9OdrLtXOsID3XMF4-_MEKlrrvr7GzAK44D1p9Ck1FM2970I3AT5f7Q3VR2pwYaCtkn-XdlcS1FrIA0TmeMgGMD7jDeEiL5Hz7AtKRRsjZA-A/s1600/DSCF1128.JPG), each character is written in black ink, in archaic Chinese style. This combination of Chinese-style “power” and Japanese-style “delicacy” in one work is extremely unusual and visually arresting.”

This series of work is a representation of my heritage. I am half Chinese and half Irish, and I have been looking to hold onto my Asian heritage while living in a western world. This created the idea of using traditional Asian techniques/imagery as the foundation for the pieces. The main pieces are pieces of silk that are hand dyed using a painting technique of bokashi, which is a Japanese term meaning from this color to that. The imagery used is inspired by Japanese print artist Kastushika Hokusai’s series of flower prints where he successfully portrays the idea of movement and atmosphere in the prints. The performance is to create an idea of atmosphere where the silks represent the seasons that spin around leaving the viewer lost in the center. Each dancer is also a representation of an animal living within their environment, a Japanese crane, frog, octopus, monkey and a woman. Their spirits dance with each other creating harmony and balance.
The jacket collection is based on traditional Chinese imagery silk screened onto linen which are then transformed into jackets. This story is about women escaping the ball to meet her lover and being caught in her love affair.

Thank you for your time and interest, I hope to see  you at the event.