May 17, 2011 – Xiangqi 象棋

I confess, I buy these little games in shops in The Richmond solely because they look cool (they are also very inexpensive). If I was really ambitious, I could learn how to play, but I don’t even care for Western Chess. I repurposed this game set for an art piece and I had to wonder what Chinese people would make of it. Is it really cultural appropriation or just silly? As an American, it is often weird encountering foreign depictions of “American” things. Obviously it can be similar experience for any people when their culture is reconfigured by another culture.

I think for my next trip to the The Richmond it’s time to hit the Russian candy store — if just for the packaging. Plus I’ll have to eat all those sweets for the sake of art.

April 7, 2011 – Fan

I am a real fan of foreign packaging. When I travel to foreign countries I always head to the supermarket. I can spend hours doing anthropological research just looking at all the “exotic” products and packaging. So much time that I suspect the staff monitoring the CCTV at Marks & Spencer thought I was a shoplifter. In the absence of foreign travel, I live in San Francisco. I have the Mission, Japantown, Chinatown and the Richmond.

One of my rules is, if it is a dollar or less, and you like it, buy it. Last week in the Richmond I came across Fan Medicated Soap. The retro looking packaging and the price of 59¢ had me. The smell is, to be subjective, medicated. It’s pretty awful. And in the spirit of authenticity for the 2011 Project, I used Fan Medicated Soap in the shower this morning. The smell doesn’t linger on the skin. Well, I think the soap removed a layer or two of skin. It’s pretty harsh. But the packaging inspired me for today’s piece.

The bar of soap is actually a rather attractive color. I was thinking that if I wanted to be a new age grifter, I could buy a load of Fan Medicated Soap at 59¢ each. Soak them to remove the embossed logo and then repackage the bars and sell them for $8 each at craft shows. “Homemade” soap indeed. But, in a way, I was too late. A quick search online and I learned the soap is seen as having some spiritual powers. Now, I am not questioning the spiritual powers of the soap and the beliefs of others. But I kept searching and found the bars priced at $5 and even £4.99. You may not live in San Francisco, but shop around because the soap should only cost 59¢.

Now, what do with the bar itself? Do I toss it or save it? It might be the perfect thing for washing my hands after a trip on MUNI.

March 23, 2011 – Mango Pudding

The Richmond is a dangerous place. The Richmond? In San Francisco? Well, “dangerous” but not in the way you might think. It’s a nice walk through the Panhandle and into Golden Gate Park. If you duck behind the Conservatory of Flowers and follow the path you find yourself in The Richmond. A few blocks later and you’re on Clement Street. It’s the street where you can get a bag-o-dim-sum for under $5 and those good Chinese almond cookies for cheap. And of course the markets have some real bargains. Mango Pudding is my particular addiction. It’s such a simple mix and easy to make. It’s not quite jello and it is not quite pudding and it is perfect. The walk is just under three miles each way. Keep walking and you can eat all the dim sum and mango pudding you like.