Art works 03 — Yiming Sun

Yiming Sun

Home Works Research Project CV&Statement

The Transformation of Water
A Journey Through Myth, Philosophy, Technology and Civilization
2024-2025

Type: digital painting
Printing Material: transparent sheet

This project consists of five paintings, each presented in two colour versions to reflect the duality and changing meanings of water throughout history.

The work was developed from field research conducted in Crete, where visits to the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology, the Archaeological Museum of Sitia, and the Folklore Museum of Sitia inspired an investigation into how water has been perceived, utilised, and transformed across different historical periods. Combining historical research, museum collections, conversations with local residents, and personal experiences during the journey, the paintings trace the evolving relationship between people and water, from sacred symbol and mythological force to technological resource and commercial commodity.

Travelling across Crete from Heraklion to Sitia and from the northern to the southern parts of the island, I experienced increasingly arid landscapes and stronger winds. These environmental changes revealed how closely water has always been intertwined with local life, shaping both daily survival and spiritual beliefs. Today, as climate change intensifies drought and large-scale wind energy and hydropower developments continue to reshape the landscape, water has become not only an essential public resource but also a profound cultural and emotional attachment for local communities.

Through these paintings, I explore the historical transformation of water and invite viewers to reflect on the complex relationship between nature, technology, civilisation, and human society. The two versions of each painting emphasise the coexistence of opposing forces, sacred and frightening, prosperity and decline, development and destruction, suggesting that every stage of civilisation carries both possibility and consequence.