Hong Kong Performing Arts Expo 2024 (Ground Search)
Our team presented the latest research and our working methods with a Lecture Performance titled "Once upon a time, there was a pirate queen in Hong Kong Waters…" (30 mins).
2024 FACP ANNUAL CONFERENCE IN HONGKONG
Pitch for New Aspects — Clare C. & Friends Fellowship
We are honoured to receive the 2nd Prize of the pitch.
BEYOND THE SHORE
A sea-based artistic research
Hong Kong is a metropolis; Hong Kong is a metropolitan city by the sea.
“Beyond the shore” is an ongoing oceanic artistic research that delves into the realm of sea myths and legends, livelihoods from ancient times and speculative futures. Focusing on Inter-Asian maritime histories and feminist mythologies, this project reconnects people from in-land to sea civilisation through research, public sharing, and performances, which invites alternative modes of thinking from a land-based to a sea-based perspective. The work also works from a relational approach between various cultures across geographical locations.
This research is initiated by artist Alysa Leung, scholar Dr. Evelyn Wan, and filmmaker Anson Sham. In different editions of the research and performance, we collaborate with other artists and creative partners.
The film has been screened online in the Let's be Together Festival (2024).
“Beyond the Shore" (Peng Chau version) connects mythology, history, and gender through an interactive performance, and invites the audience members to embark on a journey of self-reflection. We explored the relationship with the sea between islanders and non-islanders through a series of local interviews.
Who Are They?
Lo Ting
盧亭
Lo Ting is a mermaid legend in Hong Kong. During the Eastern Jin dynasty, the general Lo Chun was dissatisfied with the corruption of the court. He succeeded Sun En in attacking the capital but later faced defeat and committed suicide by drowning himself on the southern coast. According to legend, his descendants transformed into mermaids with fish heads and human bodies, and established a home on Lantau Island. Ancient texts suggest that they have yellow hair and yellow eyes. They lack the ability to speak but can smile. It is said that they appear around Lantau Island and are the ancestors of the Tanka people. 東晉將領盧循不滿朝廷腐敗，接棒孫恩攻打首都，但後來起兵失敗，逃亡到最後在南方投海自盡。相傳，他的後代化身人魚，在島嶼建立家園。 古籍記載，他們魚頭人身，身上有黃色毛髮，黃色眼睛，裸體出沒，沒有語言能力，只能笑面迎人。相傳，他們定居在大嶼山，是蜑族人的祖先，叫盧亭。 AI prompt: hong kong mermaid lo ting fish head human body
Haenyeo
海女
Haenyeo (Korean: 해녀; lit. sea women) are female divers in the South Korean province of Jeju. They originated during the Three Kingdoms period of Korea, when pearls were offered as tributes. Many men could not endure the hardship of diving and either escaped or died. As a result, women took on the burden of harvesting sea produce. Over time, Jeju’s economy has become dependent upon sea women, who maintain independence both socially and economically, and possess extensive knowledge of the ocean. They form a semi-matriarchal society, with their own social hierarchy, labour and apprenticeship structure, ritual, and cultural practices. To this day, they still use a free diving technique that relies on a single breath. This practice reflects their respect for the ocean and prevents overharvesting. "Haenyeo" culture has also spread to places like Busan, Japan, and China. 海女源於朝鮮三國時代珍珠上貢，當年男人受不了苦役，大多逃走或死去。 於是剩下來的女人就擔起潛水採摘海產的重擔，連孕婦也不例外。 久而久之，濟洲的大部分經濟來源都來自這群女性，她們在社會和經濟上維持獨立，她們具備豐富的海洋知識。她們會成群入海，有明確階級區分不同經驗年紀的海女，一起生活、學習、工作、社交、祭祀，形成一個半母系社會。 時至今日，她們依然以自由潛水方式下水，依靠單一口氣來回水面。 這是出於對海洋自然的尊重，避免過度採集。 「海女」文化並不只停留於濟州，同時亦流向釜山、日本、中國等地。 AI prompt: jeju female diver, wearing a diving suit and goggles, with a heavy rock tied to waist.
prostitutes
妓女
Hong Kong was a significant trading port during British colonialism and was a hub not only for goods but also for women. In 19th century Hong Kong, women would board ships with the hopes of better lives elsewhere, only to find themselves in a nightmare: men sold their wives, fathers deceived their daughters, and traffickers used various means to trick women into going to San Francisco. The business of exporting women from Hong Kong attracted ruthless gang members and brothel operators. Upon landing, they were often stripped bare and publicly displayed before being auctioned off. Some ended up as mistresses or concubines, while the majority became prostitutes. These women suffered humiliation and abuse in gold rush towns dominated by men, with death being their only escape. Even if they managed to escape from the brothels, many ended up becoming madams themselves, and continued subjugating other women. 在英國殖民背景下，香港作為自由貿易港，轉口的除了是貨物，更是婦女。在十九世紀的香港，有一班女人帶著希冀上船，一心以為航向自由國土，誰知卻是惡夢的開始： 男人以幾兩銀子賣掉妻子、父親把女兒騙到船倉後和船員講價、皮條客用各種方式欺騙婦女到舊金山。此等生意吸引了強悍的幫派份子和妓院經營者。她們一上岸，就遭人脫光示眾，然後被拍賣。少數女人當情婦、小妾，大多數淪為妓女。她們在這些由男性主宰的淘金城鎮飽受侮辱和虐待，唯一解脫就是死亡。即使從妓院逃出，她們也可能變成老鴇，繼續操控其他女性。 AI prompt: Hong Kong women emerge from the hold of the ship, 1870s-1910 in painting style.
Cheng Yat-sou
鄭一嫂
Cheng Yat-sou was a legendary pirate in the Qing dynasty. She was originally a Tanka prostitute, and was kidnapped by pirate leader Cheng Yat and became his wife. Cheng Yat was a descendant of the infamous Koxinga or Zheng Cheng-gong of Taiwan. He was once active in Vietnam, and led the biggest pirate force in the South China Sea, known as the “Red Flag Fleet”. Cheng Yat and Cheng Yat-Sou established the Guangdong Pirate Confederation, where they turned their looting into planned and organised plundering operations. According to Yuan Yung-lun’s History of the pirates who infested the China Sea, the Qing naval army was no match for Cheng’s Confederation. After Cheng Yat’s death, Yat-sou remarried their adoptive son, Cheung Po Tsai. She became the pirate queen of the confederation, and established a new order. She also created a ‘passport’ system where merchants were required to acquire papers on shore to avoid being robbed at sea. At her peak, Yat-sou ruled over 2000 ships and 70,000 men. 清朝著名女海盜鄭一嫂一生是一個傳奇。 她是蜑家人，本為妓女。 十多歲時被賣至妓院，長大後成為花艇名妓，後來被海盜頭目鄭一擄走，成為中國大海盜艦隊的女主人。鄭一是鄭成功的後代，曾活躍於越南，其艦隊是南中國海上最大勢力的「紅旗幫」。鄭一和鄭一嫂組織「華南海盜聯盟」，一位是精神領袖，一位是組織策劃。 從個別勢力時的隨意搶掠，改變成有計劃、有組織的劫掠行動，海盜勢力進入鼎盛時期。 根據清代袁永倫的《靖海氛記》記載，鄭氏的海上勢力甚至可以抗衡清廷水師。 後來鄭一意外身故，鄭一嫂改嫁養子，以他作為紅旗幫頭目，自己則統領六旗。 她改革六旗組織制度，頒佈法令改革，重整紀律。 她發明「通行證」，商人要出海必先在岸上辦理，否則會被劫。 根據史料，她曾擁有2000艘船隻和七萬名部屬。 AI prompt: chinese pirate queen from early 19th century in command with Tanka feature
Himiko
卑彌呼
Himiko was a ruler of the Yamatai Kingdom in ancient Japan. Not many records remain of this history, and most discussions point to one ancient Chinese historical source, Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms. After the death of the last king, the Kingdom was left in political turmoil and the people eventually rallied around shamaness Himiko as their queen. Himiko ruled through spells and shamanistic rituals. She lived in seclusion and never married. Her Kingdom united over thirty smaller states, and maintained a close relationship with the Chinese Wei Kingdom. Yamatai regularly offered tributes and in return, received bronze mirrors. The exact location and origin of the Yamatai Kingdom remain unknown to this day. 古日本邪馬台國曾出現過一位女王，名叫卑彌呼。奇怪的是，這位女王在日本歷史上的記載並不多，現有的資料多半引用自西晉的《三國志》。自男王去世後，國內經歷了多年的互相攻伐，最終共同擁立巫女卑彌呼為女王。 據傳，卑彌呼以巫術治國，深居簡出，終身不婚。她統治著三十多個小國，並與魏國保持緊密的關係，除了出使和定期進貢，更曾授封銅鏡百枚。然而，邪馬台國的具體位置和起源至今仍然沒有定論。 AI prompt: ancient Queen himiko japaneses the first known ruler of Japan (the 3rd century AD) high priestess, yamatai kingdom, Shinto sanctuaries, holding a mirror
Tinhau/ Mazu
天后/媽祖
Historically, Tinhau, also known as Mazu, originated from Fujian. She was a local shamaness who had predictory powers. When her father and brothers were in a boating incident, she successfully rescued them from drowning. From then on, islanders asked her for help. After her death at age 29, she became a local goddess to the fishermen of her island, as they sought her divine intervention and protection while working at sea. Tinhau religion spread with Zheng He’s diplomatic expeditions during the Ming dynasty. Zheng Chenggong also built a Mazu temple, first thing after landing in Tainan.This transition from respected local figure to revered maritime deity reflects the deep reverence and gratitude coastal communities had for Tinhau’s spiritual guidance and powers. Tinhau and Mazu temples across the world illustrate the journeys of diasporic Chinese. 天后或媽祖原名林默，起源於福建，傳說她精通法術，能預知人間的禍福，終身未婚。有一次，她的父親和兄長溺水，她潛入海中順利救回父兄。自此之後，她不斷幫助航海的船隻與村民。二十九歲時，她得道升仙，成為民間心中法力強大、仁慈且地位崇高的海上女神。明朝鄭和下西洋時，天后信仰亦隨之流傳。而鄭成功當年登陸臺南後，第一件事就是興建媽祖廟。天后信仰在航海活動中的重要性，成為海上安全與順利航行的象徵。隨著大航海和移民時代的到來，這位女神從福建飄洋過海，成為不同海岸之間華人的信仰。 AI prompt: Guangdong shamaness, a local goddess to the fishermen of her island, Tinhau temples across the world demonstrate the footprints of diasporic Chinese. Tinhau, mazu in water
Nuwa
女媧
Nuwa is a goddess from ancient Chinese mythology. She is often depicted with a human head and a serpent body (which perhaps represents a dragon) and is revered as the deity who created humanity and repaired heaven and earth. According to legend, Nuwa created humans from soil and bestowed them with life. When the heavens and earth were shattered, she fused together stones of five different colours to mend the sky, and restored the stability of the world. Nüwa is seen as a symbol of motherhood and creativity, and represents care for life and respect for nature. In Chinese culture, her story conveys the cosmological origins of humans and the principle of harmonious coexistence with nature. 女媧是上古神話中的女神。她人首蛇身（有指是龍身），通常被視為創造人類和修補天地的神祇。根據傳說，女媧用黃土造人，並賦予他們生命。當天地破裂時，她又用五彩石修補天空，維護世界的穩定。女媧被視為母性和創造力的象徵，代表著對生命的呵護與對自然的尊重。在中國文化中，女媧的故事傳承著人類起源和和諧共處的理念。 AI prompt: Chinese goddess, nuwa, human upper body with snake body, creating human with earth and stopping the great flood
THE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION OF ASIA SCHOLARS (ICAS)
Through a dual-channel video installation and a live lecture performance, we reinvestigate Hong Kong's coastal histories and role as a port city in the colonial era. This work takes on an ocean-centric/ archipelagic perspective that focuses on diasporic identities in the South China Sea.
MAR 2025
Hong Kong Island
HKADC Young arts tech talents residency scheme
"Beyond the Shore: The future of memories" is a multidisciplinary performance with new media and movement. On this 60-minute journey, you are invited to enter a floating "memory archive," accompanied by live music, multimedia, and movement. Discover the forgotten voices of female oceanic legends and reconnect with their potential histories through this multi-sensorial immersive experience.
The trio of artist Alysa Leung, scholar Dr. Evelyn Wan, and filmmaker Anson Sham engage in “ongoing oceanic research” that connects mythical sea beings, feminism and journeys of migration.
"Beyond the Shore" is a site-specific performance happening in Itoshima (JP). It engages with the power of myth, history and gender through a post-human ritual, offering a tribute to unspoken ocean legends.
