To My Celestial

To‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ My Celestial is a multimedia installation that presents a speculative altar inspired by Vietnamese ancestor worship.
This work grows from my experience of migration and separation as I search for ways to reconnect with my cultural roots in a foreign world. In Vietnamese ideology, the family altar is a spiritual gate between the living and the ancestors above. Traditionally, by burning elaborate paper objects and performing monthly rituals, people express their wish that these offerings will materialize in the afterlife. Yet the younger generations raised in modern environments are less likely to continue these traditions.

Through a combination of physical installation and a video-based work, To My Celestial questions the spiritual practices if they are mediated by cameras, software, and media. It does not reproduce ritual in an ethnographic way, but rather constructs an imagined environment in which contact with “home” or my afterlife becomes possible through technological means. The installation is a mixture of low-tech craft and digital tools, reflects the coexistence of tradition and modernity in a society that is characterized by speed and ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌change.

About the artist
Quân is a visual artist based in Rotterdam. His practice develops transdisciplinary art concepts at the intersection of digital media, print matter, motion graphics and photography. Growing up in Huế, Quân has nurtured a deep appreciation for Vietnamese traditions, as it closely intertwines with his art and design practice abroad. His work reflects themes of diaspora, identity and topophilia, challenging how culture and traditions continue to engage with the zeitgeist.

This work is part of the MOMO X Amarte Open Call 2026. Read more.