Why A-MARE? In Italian “amare” is the verb to love, “al mare” means to the sea; ”ma” universally alludes to “mother” and similarly, the Chinese ideogram of “sea” contains the ideogram of “mother”. Kristin Man, whose cognitive process encompasses English, Cantonese and Italian, ponders, “if to go to the sea is to love, then there is really no specific location where we are to love. If to be closer to the sea means to be closer to the source of life, then there is no better reminder of our connectedness than the ocean because of its presence and its fluidity”.

Having lived in sea places such as Hong Kong, both sides of the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, and travelled through many more and now based in Vancouver, she feels a special affinity towards the ocean overall. Realities have our ocean embody not only some of the deepest pains and pleasures but practicalities that connect us. Through A-MARE, the artist encourages the viewer to ask questions pertinent to their personal and our collective experience of what “to love” may mean— “through my artworks of love and sea shall we meet?”