These birds represent the languages of the generations before me - telling the story of colonization and migration. I researched birds that live in the regions where my ancestors lived, with each bird representing the language that they spoke in their lifetime. The languages represented here include (from top to bottom): Taiwanese, Japanese, Hakka, Cantonese, Malay, Mandarin, and English. The languages I no longer understand still sound beautiful to me.

🦜 And for my birders - Shoutout to the Taiwan Barbet, Siebold Green Pigeon (of Taiwan and Japan, representing Taiwan under Japanese colonial rule), Northern Lapwings (of Changting, Fujian, China), Javan Sparrow Bird (of Ipoh, Malaysia), Whitehead’s Trogon (of Kinabalu, Malaysia), Verditer Flycatcher (Fujian, China), and the Great California Quail.

The print is a double-sided risograph. The front features the image, and the back features the name of the bird and the language it represents.

Limited edition of 88 prints. Block print on Thai Kozo paper.
Dimensions: Paper is 12 x 16"
Image is approx. 9.5 x 12"