ethan chan

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all work:

2024  from rags to riches...
            seconds
            get yourself a lawyer...
            hungry man...
            anthem            
            johanna’s not here
            (thomas series)
            pure evil

2023  meanwhile...
            white light/white heat
            liquid ecstasy...
            for wile e.
            leashed steam...
            family dinner
            love letters
            wild, west
            selections from the...

2022  china, revisited
            steer/madonna
            hail to the king
            tea for masochists

2021   fighting the loneliness
            american pie
            not your country
    
2020  the saint, the villain...
            stolen bike
            low velocity             
            just like a woman

2019   she was trying...
            why don’t you just...
            fat man & little boy
            american reformation
            made in china
            19 transactions
            sign language

From Rags to Riches, and Rags Again, 2024 RELIC
LOBSTER-THEMED SALT & PEPPER SHAKERS

PERFORMANCE
FEBRUARY 21ST & JUNE 25TH, 2024

In the 1700’s, lobsters were such an abundant source of food that they were given the title “the poor man’s chicken”, being primarilly used as fertilizer or food for prisoners or slaves. Today, a lobster dish is considered a high-class luxury, some restaurants selling them for over thousands of dollars.

In 2024, the Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego gave me an artist-residency along with a grant of $10,000 to make art with. Using the “underwater cockroach” as a symbol of the ups and downs that come with the profession of art-making, my first and last purchases with the grant were a “lobster dish” for myself, my consumption of the meals was documented through photography.

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First Meal
Full Course Lobster Meal

1 hard-shell Maine Lobster tail, 1 Western Rock tail , a side of grilled brocolli, a Yukon Gold baked potato & 2 butter biscuits.

Purchased at Odyssey in Granada Hills, CA for $106.67




Last Meal
Attempted Homemade “Lobster-Roll”

Imitation crab, Wonderbread & Heinz mayonnaise.

Purchased at Walmart & H-Mart in San Diego, CA for $11.71