Butterfly girls (original painting)
Butterfly girls (original painting)
Acrylic painting and colored pencil on 18” x 24” canvas, part of the “Hold Me Close” exhibition hosted by SF Ocean Ave (details)
When I was a kid, I went to a Chinese school that pooled together kids from our 3 neighboring towns and met every Saturday. Through that, I joined an all girls Chinese jump rope troupe, and we called ourselves the butterfly girls – our final performance featured winged costumes and flimsy antenna headbands. Chinese jump rope is performed using a circular jump rope that is held taut by two members of the group to give the rope tension, starting at ankle height then moving higher as the difficulty increases. The rest of the members perform special moves to hop in and out of the rope, coordinating to create both play and performance. This scene uses gazes and body language between members – a flirty side eye, a jealous glare – to illustrate the coordination and trust demanded of Chinese jump roping, while celebrating forgotten hobbies from our youth.
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