Description:

The project is built on a contemporary adaptation of the ancient Chinese tale – Chang 'e flying to the moon. This is the story of a Chinese woman who is forced to go and live alone on the moon. In the original story, people kept describing how lonely she was. However, in this project, I will explore how her life and thoughts are changed through contemporary technology such as satellite networks, online shopping, and space travel. By reinventing Chang’e’s story, I hope to explore women's own awakening and change as they experience life circumstances and cultural migration in the 21st century.

This research project investigates how character-based illustration can help re-present women with a view to encouraging a more authentic self-perception and awareness. Illustrations have the potential to present images of women with diverse characteristics that break through traditional gender role stereotypes and encourage women to pursue their personal values and autonomy. Authentic image development enables female audiences to appreciate their unique qualities and potential, encouraging participation in real social roles, and thus promoting self-acceptance.

In my experience of growing up in Asia, women have often been expected to be gentle, beautiful, modest, hardworking, and submissive. Throughout history, Asian women have also been expected to conform to this fixed pattern. This seems to be because, in Asian cultures, the role of the woman is presupposed from birth to be the wife and mother of the man. When I came to New Zealand, I found that women did not have to fit into such a mold; they seemed freer, more diverse, with more options and open social roles. In particular, New Zealand was forward-looking in the feminist process as the first country to realize women's right to vote. Most women here could choose whether they wanted to become wives or mothers. As I rediscovered myself in this new cultural space, I was exposed to and experienced first-hand the stories of women from different media: some from strangers on social media and some from traditional narrative media such as film, music, and books.

The original intention of this research was to be able to create illustrated characters and stories that would empathize with the female reader while presenting the real everyday lives of contemporary women. Through these illustrated characters and stories, I hope to portray real lives, both the positive moments of their lives, and also the difficulties, confusion, and worries they face.

My goal is to be able to challenge the stereotypes and prejudices against women created by previous romantic stories or tales by showing real women's experiences and emotions. To encourage them to pursue their own goals and values, and to expand the understanding and recognition of themselves. Such stories provide a more positive and realistic perspective for women to help them build their self-identity, realize their self-worth, and pursue true happiness and fulfillment in their own lives.