Religious Objects — roingchen

roing chen

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How do objects in Taiwanese religion and folk belief function as triggers for spatial connection within the spiritual realm?

Type: Zine
Year: 2025

In Taiwan, objects and rituals serve as mediums to communicate with various spiritual spaces. So, how do objects in Taiwanese religion and folk belief function as triggers for spatial connection within the spiritual realm?

This work explores how the spiritual world in Taiwanese religion is created, transformed, or revealed in four different forms. Using the format of an unending flip card, invisible spaces shift and evolve as the viewer engages with the text.

① Incense – to summon: The beginning of communication. As incense is lit, a channel is opened between the physical world and the spiritual realm.
② Spirit Objects – to transmit: Paper offerings are burned to send them to the other world, where they may be used, traded, or offered.
③ Talisman – to transform: Spaces—or the body itself—are purified when the ashes of a talisman are consumed or when it is affixed to a doorway.
④ Guan Luo Yin – to create: With a piece of red cloth covering the eyes, participants are invited to enter the spiritual world and witness its presence.