Building upon the theme of "Have a Good Rest!", Calmping explores the concept and ideal of rest in contemporary society. The work examines the growing trend where outdoor cafés replace traditional Vietnamese plastic stools with mass-produced camping chairs. This shift represents a commodified form of camping—creating an illusion of escape that simulates nature within urban confines.

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Calmping draws on Karl Marx's socialist ideals, championing meaningful rest that nurtures creativity and personal renewal. It examines how consumerism and widespread burnout have warped our understanding of genuine rest. The work challenges viewers to see rest both as an act of protest and as a path to finding calm amid modern life's demands.

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The installation's elements—a camping chair, sedge mat, and two frames—weave a rich metaphorical tapestry. The embroidered camping chair, paired with a QR code linking to Marxist ideologies, highlights tensions between tradition, modernity, and political thought. While the camping chair represents manufactured comfort in our consumer society, my designed sedge mat—a Vietnamese cultural touchstone—anchors the work in tradition.

The slow embroidery process stands in stark contrast to the quick-consumption ethos of the camping chair, highlighting the gap between authentic relaxation and its commercialized counterparts.

The QR code acts as a gateway to Marx's philosophy, encouraging viewers to examine rest through the lens of capitalism and socialism. The pairing of this digital portal with the embroidered chair represents the interplay between theory and lived experience—showing how ideologies shape our daily lives.
At its core, Calmping sparks a conversation about rest as resistance, authenticity in a consumer-driven world, and the meeting point of global and local traditions.

The embroidered camping chair is set against "The Bliss"—Charles O'Rear's unaltered landscape photograph that became Windows XP's iconic wallpaper—alongside the QR code linking to Michael Cholbi's article on work and labor.