Rites of Seasons
（2021 - 2024）
︎The Garden of Adonis, 2021
The Garden of Adonis
limewood, silicone, poly clay, white crystal, agate, myrrh, anemone
95 x 55 x 144 cm, 2021
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“The Garden of Adonis" draws inspiration from the ancient Greek ritual of Adonia, which commemorates the plant and seasons deity Adonis.
Every early summer, marginalized women in the city-state of Athens (prostitutes, widows, lesbians, etc.) spontaneously organize this ritual. They carry the "Garden of Adonis" (a pot filled with withered lettuce or wheat) and the "Little Adonis" (a phallic symbol), gathering on rooftops. Under the cover of night, they burn myrrh (the embodiment of Adonis's mother) and indulge in drinking and revelry throughout the night. Amidst indulgence, laughter, and curses, they commemorate the tragic fate of Adonis.
The myths associated with Adonis are always contradictory and captivating: they are tragic yet pure, dying yet reborn, indulgent yet remorseful. Through the ritual and mythology, the women of the Adonia festival release the injustice of fate, briefly escaping societal prejudices. "Fragile yet resilient, happy yet sorrowful, passionate yet futile, destined to fade away yet destined to be immortal."
“The Garden of Adonis" draws inspiration from the ancient Greek ritual of Adonia, which commemorates the plant and seasons deity Adonis.
Every early summer, marginalized women in the city-state of Athens (prostitutes, widows, lesbians, etc.) spontaneously organize this ritual. They carry the "Garden of Adonis" (a pot filled with withered lettuce or wheat) and the "Little Adonis" (a phallic symbol), gathering on rooftops. Under the cover of night, they burn myrrh (the embodiment of Adonis's mother) and indulge in drinking and revelry throughout the night. Amidst indulgence, laughter, and curses, they commemorate the tragic fate of Adonis.
The myths associated with Adonis are always contradictory and captivating: they are tragic yet pure, dying yet reborn, indulgent yet remorseful. Through the ritual and mythology, the women of the Adonia festival release the injustice of fate, briefly escaping societal prejudices. "Fragile yet resilient, happy yet sorrowful, passionate yet futile, destined to fade away yet destined to be immortal."