Resonance of the Peaks
峰峦余韵
Resonance of the Peaks reimagines the fantastical beasts from the Classic of Mountains and Seas(山海经), one of China’s earliest cultural and geographical records. Here, mountains are never barren.
Each peak harbours creatures both familiar and uncanny: a pig that grows pearls inside its belly. A two-bodied snake whose appearance foretells drought. A faceless red sack that dances. A nine-tailed sheep with eyes on its back. A white deer with four horns. A bee as large as a mandarin duck. A fox with fish fins, crying out its name.
Beyond animal forms, these creatures were seen as omens – signs of drought, flood, poison, terror, courage, hidden riches, and primeval chaos – manifestations of human imagination shaped by fear, endurance, and longing. Through oral tradition their stories are passed down and transformed across generations. With each retelling, details expanded and evolved: tails multiplied, sizes grew, horns sprouted anew.
Through this oral tradition, the ordinary became extraordinary–just like a chinese whisper.