Fireflies
Fireflies, 2025
Acrylic, soil pigment & gold leaf on paper in wooden frame
36 x 23.8 cm
Photo
SUCHSIZE / Yukawa Nakayasu
This belongs to the first part of my stamp painting series ‘As Roots to Trees, as Sea to Streams’. Inspired by a Vietnamese proverb, the series draws on the practice of honoring family history and lineage. Instead of the usual motifs of celebrated public figures, world heritage sites, plants, or extinct animals found in Vietnamese stamps, the first part of the series seek to preserve personal and familial narratives.
This was inspired by my trip to Cúc Phương National Park, when I was contemplating a scene of fireflies at night in the forest. This moment, both magical and nostalgic as fireflies have now completely disappeared from urban environments, reminded me of my grandfather, his humility, a shimmering, quiet light similar to the Buddhist mantras that my mother recites daily. In the end, what I want to preserve in 'As roots to trees, as sea to streams' series is the warmth that lingers in the memories of others, rather than the achievements and titles prescribed by societal standards.