monicaCREATIVE NOTES / Art & making
Two Handmade Fans: Lettering, Ribs and Soft Decorations
Monica’s two fan handcrafts begin with different shapes. Reunion Fan organises its design around the Chinese characters for reunion, while Pink & Lilac Fan places decorations along the spread of the ribs. Both are objects held in the hand, but one invites attention towards its centre and the other along a wide arc.
Reunion Fan: words become shapes
The central characters in Reunion Fan are cut out, with green textures helping their shapes stand out. The rounded body leads down to a handle and a golden tassel. Read the characters first, then look at their outlines and the spaces between them. The lettering does more than name a theme: it also contributes to the arrangement of solid and open areas across the face of the object.
Pink & Lilac Fan: follow the ribs
When the folding fan is open, pale ribs spread out from the lower joint. Pink pom-poms follow the upper edge, lilac decoration traces the arc, and small flower-like details sit at the sides. Beads appear along the ribs, with a tassel below. Imagine the framework without its additions, then notice how the decorations use directions already present in the object instead of filling every available space.
Look beyond colour to texture and spacing
Reunion Fan has a concentrated central motif, while the folding fan retains many spaces between its ribs. Both have tassels, paired with different colour families. Compare the firm framework with the softer outlines of pom-poms and hanging threads. This moves a discussion beyond colour preference towards how materials appear together. Texture, repeated details and unfilled spaces can all become part of a description grounded in the photographs.
Leave space in your own arrangement
To try the idea on paper, draw a fan outline and its supporting lines, then choose a repeating element such as a circle or small flower. Arrange those elements along an edge before fixing them in place. Try different gaps and leave some areas open. The activity explores how decoration can respond to a structure, while giving you room to choose an entirely different colour palette or subject.
Two more questions
Are these two sides of one fan?
No. The collection records Reunion Fan and Pink & Lilac Fan as two separate handcrafts, each with its own page and photograph.
Which details are useful to look at?
Look at lettering and openings, the arrangement along the edges, gaps between ribs and how tassels join the whole. Details you can point to make a response more specific.
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Profile information was supplied by her family. These notes were prepared by the Monica portfolio editorial team from the original works, performance records and playable projects on this site, with AI-assisted writing and translation. Descriptions of existing work are distinguished from activities readers may try. The articles are editorial introductions, not first-person accounts written by Monica.
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