Mural Paintings

融合本地大自然、歷史、藝術的旅舍壁畫系列

Mural paintings commissioned by hostels, inspired by the local landscape, history and art.

Puerto Escondido
Oaxaca, Mexico

Time Spent: 16 Days

Located on the rooftop yoga patio of a hostel, this ocean-facing wall is admired by guests after their meditation session or relaxing afternoon on the hammock.

I am inspired by the mountainous landscape and Pacific coast of Oaxaca, and their traditional handcraft alebrijes. I incorporated the patterns found on these craft animals into native fauna, and created the distinctive looks of the animals. For the cacti, I made a twist by applying the flowers with a look imitating Oaxacan embroidery found on tradition dresses donned beautifully by Oaxacan women.

I love to play with special features provided by the location, in this case, the sewage and the existing flowers on the pole. I made the pipe hole into the mouth of our lovely yellow box fish, and added a hummingbird to suck on the flowers. 

Valladolid
Yucatán, Mexico

Time Spent: 4 Days

My first mural outside of Hong Kong. The hostel owner would like to add a piece of Mayan jungle to their courtyard, with native birds and their namesake insect, the blue butterfly. 

On a tree at Ek Balam, a Mayan ruin nearby, I saw the mesmerizing native bird "Toh", only found in Central America, for the first time, and decided to include it into my jungle. In the wall of green, lush leaves, the bright red hibiscus and small red flowers stand out from this self-created jungle.

San Cristóbal de las Casas
Chiapas, Mexico

Time Spent: 10 Days

A change in creative direction, in this hostel in San Cristóbal I looked into Mayan beliefs and tradition for inspiration. According to Mayan mythology, hummingbird is the only animal that can travel between the current world and the underworld, thus Mayans see it as a messenger from the afterlife. A visit of a hummingbird to one's house brings blessing from one's ancestors.

Another important element here is the colourful arch of the church of San Juan Chamula, a traditional Mayan town 30 minutes from San Cristóbal. In here tradition is not a thing of the past, and local residents regularly attend this particular centre of worship, seek guidance from shamans and offer their sacrifice. Shamanistic ceremonies and live chicken sacrifice inside a Catholic church was unlike anything I've ever seen, leaving a lasting impression in my heart. Hence I incorporated the distinctive façade of the church into our composition, with a little girl with a traditional Zinacantán cape trying to catch the beautiful hummingbird.

Hummingbird is known for its fast movement. I studied the bird carefully and chose five poses of it approaching a flower. This gives me the opportunity to appreciate the beauty and grace of the tiny bird. Together with the patterned arch of the church, this mural interprets the cycle of life - from youth to the afterlife and return, presenting the complex and fascinating spiritual life of the Mayan culture in Chiapas.