How this artist transforms historical Chinese symbolism into paintings

South China Morning Post

08-05-2025

Impulse purchases can cause regret, but for Dominique Fung, that's far from the case. An accidental click of the mouse at an online Sotheby's sale led the artist to acquire a Qing dynasty silk embroidered carpet that now serves as an integral component of her most recent exhibition, 'Beneath the Golden Canopy', at Hong Kong's Massimo de Carlo gallery.
Dominique Fung's works showcased at her most recent exhibition, 'Beneath the Golden Canopy'. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
Initial panic at her purchase eventually transformed into satisfaction. 'I just bought a Qing dynasty carpet. How insane is that?' says Fung, recalling the shock she felt when the auction house declared hers the winning bid. 'I've never bought anything at auction, but I remember seeing it and I think it was meant to be.'
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At Massimo de Carlo's Tai Kwun space, the carpet is placed on a slightly elevated platform. Tones of crimson and amber dominate. 'They said it was at the Summer Palace, and
Empress Dowager Cixi could have possibly walked on it,' Fung says with excitement. The protagonist of Fung's new body of work, Cixi was a controversial historical figure. She joined the Qing dynasty court as one of the emperor's concubines and was known to rule the imperial kingdom from behind the scenes after the emperor died, leaving their young son the heir to his kingdom.
While invoking Cixi's past, the artist revisits her own history. Of Shanghainese and Hong Kong heritage, Fung was raised in Canada and is based in New York. Her evocative paintings are filled with symbolism from Chinese history and folklore as she reinvents narratives of figures once fetishised in the West. Her work highlights overlooked themes and characters, particularly female ones.
A wooden box sits on the Qing dynasty carpet that Dominique Fung bought at an auction. Photo: Jocelyn Tam
'Cixi ruled from behind what was known as the yellow curtain, and that's what the yellow tones of this painting refer to,' Fung says, gesturing towards Yellow Silk Screen (2025), one of the large-scale canvases installed in the gallery's first room. The work is a diptych, one half bears a warm amber tone and depicts a seated body dressed in elaborate garb (referencing Cixi) underneath an expansive tent, while the right half has a cooler green overtone, and features fish (a motif Fung often employs) emerging from the tent, perhaps to enact the empress' orders and do her bidding. Alluding to the inner and outer worlds – of Cixi,
the Forbidden City and the artist's own – Fung questions what is and isn't visible.
Describe your work in three words
Amber, excavation, collage.
What intrigues you about Cixi?
Her story is really that of ours. It's the things we still have to do, as women, to secure a place in the world or to secure power, and how we work in established systems. Her father loved politics and raised her with an understanding of politics, and she could read and write, which was rare for a woman. Because the emperor didn't want to discuss politics with her when she entered the court, she had to make herself smaller to survive in the system, until eventually she ended up ruling.
Installation shot of Dominique Fung's solo exhibition. Photo: courtesy Massimo de Carlo
Tell us about the carpet and the wooden boxes sitting atop it
The carpet is a literal tie to that time – we're now in the physical realm of the 1850s. Wooden jewellery boxes were often given as wedding gifts, as denoted by the 'double happiness' characters emblazoned on some of them. They hold smaller paintings that are seductive and luxurious. They're all from eBay, Etsy and Craigslist, some are antique while others are contemporary.
This could be her (Cixi's) living room. This could be her dining room where she threw many banquets. Banquet Menu II (2025) depicts a lavish banquet with all sorts of delicacies spread across three layered tables. Candles pierce the tables, with small arms and hands holding them up, representing the various layers of labour it takes to stage this elaborate feast. It's also similar to Cixi's journey in the palace. She was at the bottom when she first came into the court and she had to climb her way to the top.
Banquet Menu II (2025) by Dominique Fung. Photo: courtesy Massimo de Carlo
What's your creative process like?
When you look at a blank canvas, it's so difficult. You ask yourself, 'Where do I even start?' So sometimes I start with just an object. For example, these warring state fish with little feet. I started painting them because they're so silly looking. So I started from there, and then I replicated that. In that process I was thinking, 'But what if there were five of them? What if they had friends? What if they actually had feet? What if they were soldiers and warriors?' So I put feet on them and they're walking on land.
Where does your interest in history, antiquities and folklore come from?