This work explores the collision of symbolic cultures, where images from different traditions coexist, overlap, and compete for attention. Meanings that may once have been clear become unstable when removed from their original contexts and placed alongside unfamiliar symbols, creating a confusion of voices rather than a single narrative.
Beneath a misted surface, eastern imagery emerges only in fragments. A hare, phoenix, and demon drift in and out of visibility, obscured by layers of reflection, texture, and distance. Traditional tattoo-inspired outlines further blur distinctions between visual languages, making it difficult to determine where one tradition ends and another begins.
At the centre, the skull serves as a universal symbol of mortality and shared humanity. Yet the meanings of the surrounding symbols remain fluid. The hare may suggest luck, sacrifice, or the moon; the phoenix rebirth or transformation; the demon protection, fear, or temptation. Their interpretations shift according to cultural perspective.
The work reflects a world in which symbols and traditions circulate globally, becoming detached from their original contexts and layered with new meanings. The phrase CRY. CAN’T. YOU. extends this uncertainty, asking not only whether we can express ourselves, but whether we can still be heard amid overlapping histories and competing narratives.