2024 - The redemption of the light

Grotto art is a treasure that combines Buddhist culture with local culture after it was introduced to China. It combines the traditional techniques of Chinese painting and sculpture and is uniquely Chinese. In order to bring daylight into the dark caves for carving, ancient craftsmen cut many Windows into the rock walls. But while the light brings illumination, it also makes the colors on the Buddha slowly fade over time. Nowadays the bigger problem is the disfiguring repair of. Restoration using simple and crude methods erases many traces of the history that already existed. The Buddha statues are covered with cheap paint and the original patterned edges, folds of clothes and other subtle traces will no longer exist. The disfigurement of Buddha statues is a frequent occurrence, and when the statues are repaired with colorful and glittering gold, our question arises: how can we make a better restoration?
We try to use light to awaken the colors of the Buddha statues and recreate the faded masterpieces of the world. Let the light complete the atonement of the statue. Buddhism talks about karma and reincarnation, once the light acted as a catalyst to make the statue fade, then the debt should be paid by the light as well. By refracting the colored light, the colors are thinly shrouded on the statue, and a device made up of multiple colored glass panels transforms the light into the statue’s new costume, restoring the statue to its former glory.