Finial/Pillar Shape and Mount Meru

I was initially inspired to create the artwork in this shape through two personal stories:

During a long car drive, I recalled the memory of my father passing. He passed away during COVID-19, and I experienced his funeral via video call with my mother, the only family member present. I saw his body cremated in a crematorium pavilion. I decided to research this pavilion, focusing on its shape, as a way to confront this emotional and haunting memory. After reading Deathpower by Erik W. Davis, I discovered that these pavilions are called “Meru” in some Eastern provinces.

While researching its pillar-like shape, I recalled a memory of a story told by a Khmer-Belgian engineering student, who claimed that the finials of Khmer traditional dancers acted as conductors of electricity, as they were made of gold, allowing dancers to connect with the spirits of the skies. After much googling, I stumbled upon the Great Crown of Victory of Cambodia, (worn by Norodom Sihanouk on his coronation and stolen during the 70s civil wars) and discovered that it was also a representation of Meru.

Stumbling upon Meru twice by chance, I decided to learn more about Meru, its different contexts in Hindu and Buddhist cosmologies and its representations in Khmer and Javanese societies.

Friends and Mentors for Guidance

The advice featured in the artwork reflects another aspect of my life, where art, religion, and teachers play a central role in understanding how to live a healthy, balanced life. Mental health awareness has been crucial for me due to the devastating impact of the Cambodian civil wars, including the Khmer Rouge period, on my parents lives and subsequently on my upbringing.

Developing tolerance for distress became an urgent concept for me to develop, explored through therapy, Theravada Buddhism, and the wisdom of friends and mentors. While making this artwork, I reflected on the lives lost in my family and imagined what guidance I might have received from caring extended family members, in particular from my father's side. In this thought, I also realized that many friends, some of whom were mentors, had already passed down advice to me that had shaped my resilience profoundly - caring like extended family members. In this work, I honored their wisdom by asking them what advice had been meaningful in their own lives and engraving it into teak.

Scripts and Visual References

I included these inscriptions in their ancestral scripts because of my fascination with Southeast Asian scripts. The year Starlight was made marked the year I finally learned to read Khmer, my ancestral script.

While developing my previous artwork, The Cosmic Tortoise, I explored the similarities between Kawi (Old Javanese) and Khmer, noting that both—along with Cham—emerged in the 7th century, pointing to a historical period of exchange and influence. Using Kawi, Khmer, Hindi, and Arabic in Starlight was my gesture toward the survival of scripts and ancestral languages, connecting us, the descendants, to this history.

The images accompanying the scripts reference both the spirit of the person who provided the advice and art history:

• Hindi: the extinct Javan elephant portrayed on the relief of Borobudur (9th century, Elephas Maximus Sondaicus)
• Kawi: the controversial stegosaurus on the relief of Ta Prohm (12th century)
• Khmer: Naga balustrade from Preah Khan, now in Musée Guimet (12th century, taken to Paris in 1878 by colonizers)
• Arabic: a beautiful blue bird called the European roller (Coracias garrulus)

Ornamentation

Master carver Kak Ros, trained in Jepara-style carving, consulted Kbach (2005) by Chan Vitharin — one of the most sought-after books on Khmer ornamentation design. From it, he selected a pattern he considered "complete", as it contained flowers, stems, and fruit — spot the pineapple in the artwork! He then carved the motif into the artwork’s teak surfaces, creating a genuine Jeparanese–Khmer blend.

Meteorite

The artwork features a meteorite called Jepara, excavated in 2008 in Jepara, Indonesia. Its unique makeup and appearance come from being a pallasite—a collision meteorite in space before it landed on Earth. This is the only significant pallasite found in Southeast Asia region.

Soundscape

The soundscape is performed by Medha, the only all-female traditional drum ensemble in Cambodia. Medha uses a long trumpet/horn revived from extinction called the turyya, which appears on Angkor Wat reliefs (12th–16th century). More information can be found here, by the ethno-archaeo-musicologist Patrick Kersalé.

Mount Meru

I consulted Prof. Erik W. Davis to better understand Mount Meru, and his book Deathpower kickstarted this artwork. Prof. Eric Huntington’s book Creating the Universe: Depictions of the Cosmos in Himalayan Buddhism (2019) and his online resources were monumental in my understanding of Meru in the Buddhist context.

I am grateful to Dr. Wayan Jarrah Sastrawan for informing me about the English translation of the Tantu Pagelaran (15th century), by Stuart Robson . If I recall correctly: If I recall correctly: in this manuscript, the origin of Java is linked to Mount Meru. Batara Guru (Shiva) filled Java with people, but the island was tumbling, floating in the ocean. He ordered Brahma and Vishnu to take the forms of a giant turtle and a naga serpent and sent them to Jambudvipa to cut off Mt. Meru. Together they carried it to Java, which helped stabilise the island and made it habitable for the Javanese

I am also forever indebted to PURANA Project, Dr. Elizabeth Cecil, Prof. Peter Bisschop, Arya Aditya, and Dr. Trent Walker. Please click on the links to learn about their mindblowing work.

Miteman Exhibition

Starlight debuted at a self-organized show called Puranic Transmutations by the Miteman Collective (Yosephine Prajnaputri, Ripase Nostanta Purba, Muhammad Eva Nuril Huda, Danielle Kevins) at Sinten KITA by Kolektif KITA in Yogyakarta in July 2025. The artwork was installed in a pendopo pavilion, and the opening was attended by over 100 guests. I performed a 30-minute lecture-performance about Starlight’s construction and inspiration.

Thanks to:

I am eternally grateful for so many people who made this artwork possible.

Matur Nuwun Pak Ragil, Kotot, and Studio Kak Ros team. Terima Kasih Banyak Miteman Collective and Kolektif KITA for hosting and supporting the Miteman groupshow. Matur nuwun Pak Eko for preparing our exhibition. Yoga Efendi, Mukesh Vanjani, and Hichame Assi for your moving advice and the words inscribed in the work, and my late father, whose advice I also inscribed.

អរគុណច្រើន Medha for the soundtrack (thank you bong Pheak). Terima kasih Mbak Dita and Pak Hery for overseeing transport of Starlight (I got Pos Indonesia stamps of my work!).

Bedankt Mondriaanfonds for the Start funding and CBK Rotterdam for Praktijkbijdrage to fund my artist fee for the Jogja show.

Thank you so much Prof. Erik W. Davis and Dr. Wayan Jarrah Sastrawan for helping me with insights on Javanese/Khmer Meru. Ayash Laras, Ki Sri Anggono W., Kuychay Chou for helping me with Kawi, Khmer and Javanese scripts.

អរគុណច្រើន Bong Chanveasna from SNA Arts Management & Khvay Samnang, Hank Hsiu, Svay Sareth & Yim Maline, Phloeun Prim from Cambodian Living Arts, Meta Moeng from Dambaul, Lyna from Creative Generation for mega encouraging words in my time in Cambodia.

អរគុណច្រើនណាស់ Belikekhmerschool & my teacher Yong Riya for teaching me Khmer script! And many others for their inspiring words and meaningful encouragement.

Finally, I am grateful to my partner, friends, and family for supporting me through this intense first half of 2025. Thanks guys.

Next Show: Amsterdam

We will present Starlight in North-Amsterdam on September 19 2025 until 12 October 2025, thanks to Marcos Kueh and Unfair! Keep an eye on their website for more information!