A contemplative diptych inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival, where one full moon unites sky and water in an imagined landscape of peonies, birds and goldfish, offering a quiet reflection on harmony and connection.

Under the Same Moon (Diptych)

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A contemplative diptych inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival, where one full moon unites sky and water in an imagined landscape of peonies, birds and goldfish, offering a quiet reflection on harmony and connection.
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  • A contemplative diptych inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival, where one full moon unites sky and water in an imagined landscape of peonies, birds and goldfish, offering a quiet reflection on harmony and connection.
  • One panel of Chill Passion Diptych
  • One panel of Chilled Passion diptych
  • A contemplative diptych inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival, where one full moon unites sky and water in an imagined landscape of peonies, birds and goldfish, offering a quiet reflection on harmony and connection.
  • One panel of Chill Passion Diptych
  • One panel of Chilled Passion diptych
Under the Same Moon (Diptych)

Under the Same Moon (Diptych)

Created in 2016, Under the Same Moon is a diptych that marks an early stage in the development of the Imagining Better Worlds body of work. Painted in ink and pigments on rice paper, the two panels together create a tranquil landscape in which blooming peonies, birds, water and a full moon exist in quiet harmony. Inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival, the diptych does not depict the celebration itself. Instead, it reflects on the quieter emotions associated with the season, offering a peaceful world where beauty, nature and remembrance are held together beneath one shared moon.
Story Behind the Painting

Under the Same Moon was painted during the autumn of 2016, around the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Traditionally, the festival celebrates reunion, with families gathering beneath the full moon. Living far from home, however, I experienced the season rather differently. Rather than focusing on celebration, I found myself drawn to the quieter feelings that accompany distance and remembrance.

The diptych imagines a world suspended between sky and water. In the first panel, the full moon shines above flourishing peonies while birds move freely through the branches. In the second, the moon reappears as a reflection in still water, accompanied by a goldfish beneath drifting petals. Together, the two paintings extend a single landscape beyond one viewpoint, connecting what is above with what lies below.

Although birds, goldfish and peonies all carry traditional associations with harmony, prosperity and good fortune, they are not presented here as symbolic illustrations. Instead, they simply inhabit a world where every element exists in balance. The paintings became less about cultural celebration and more about creating a place of calm, where nature offers comfort through its quiet constancy.

Looking back, Under the Same Moon represents an important step in my artistic development. Long before I consciously began exploring imagined worlds through paintings such as Xanadu and Where I Longed to Be, I was already instinctively creating places where beauty and tranquillity could offer a sense of belonging.
Artistic Enquiry

Under the Same Moon explores how imagined landscapes can become emotional places rather than physical ones.

The diptych asks whether nature can offer a sense of connection across distance. By placing the same moon in both sky and water, the paintings suggest that although people may be separated by geography, they remain connected through the enduring rhythms of the natural world. Rather than escaping reality, the imagined landscape becomes a gentle space where longing, peace and hope can coexist.
Looking Deeper

The moon has long been a powerful symbol within Chinese culture, particularly during the Mid-Autumn Festival, when it represents reunion and shared experience. Yet Under the Same Moon offers a quieter interpretation of that tradition.

Instead of depicting festivities, the paintings focus on stillness. The full moon appears twice, once above and once reflected below, linking two perspectives within a single landscape. Birds move effortlessly through the air while the goldfish glides beneath the water, creating a natural rhythm that unites sky, land and water.

This harmony is reinforced by the peonies themselves. They do not dominate the composition but belong naturally within it, flourishing alongside every other living element. The result is an imagined world where nothing competes for attention and every part contributes to an atmosphere of calm.

Viewed today, the diptych reveals the beginnings of an artistic direction that would become increasingly important in later years: the creation of poetic landscapes that express emotional truths through the quiet beauty of nature.
Process & Materials

Under the Same Moon was painted using traditional ink and mineral pigments on rice paper, allowing delicate layers of colour and finely controlled brushwork to build depth without losing transparency.

Working across two panels required careful consideration of balance and continuity. Although each painting stands independently, they were conceived together, with the composition flowing naturally from the moonlit sky into its reflection on the water. Repeated motifs, including the peonies, birds, goldfish and moon, create visual connections while allowing each panel to retain its own atmosphere.

The restrained palette and meticulous detail reflect the contemplative pace of the painting process, reinforcing the sense of quiet that defines the work.
Artwork Details

Year: 2016

Medium: Ink and pigments on rice paper

Dimension: 138 cm (W) x 140 cm (H) x 0.1 cm (D) (Two panels)

Artwork Status: In Private Collection

Perhaps the places we long for are not defined by geography at all, but by the moments of peace we carry with us, wherever we stand beneath the same moon.

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