English Poster Assignment explores how Chinese children approach the creation of English-language posters in school. Treated less as tools of communication and more as visual decoration, English words become ornamental—sometimes nonsensical but resembling English in form.

Fragments of Western media and cultural references are absorbed through an innocent lens and reassembled playfully, often out of context. The project mimics this aesthetic: hand-drawn slogans, misused phrases, and mismatched imagery reflect both compliance and quiet resistance. While the posters are assigned tasks, children find unique ways to engage with or distort the language. It is an irony of aestheticizing the process of learning while being innocent about the heaviness of cultural reference behind languages.

This piece takes the form of a medal, symbolizing the performance of success in hyper-competitive environments. It reflects the experience of fighting for that fleeting gasp in class—the rare chance to speak or be heard.

In these moments, people become like crocodiles biting each other’s tails, locked in a silent, thrashing struggle for attention and validation. The medal becomes a bitter reward, honoring not achievement, but endurance within a system that values aggression over reflection, and dominance over dialogue.

This work takes the form of a giant rug sewn from children’s fabrics, embroidered with “congratulations” phrases sourced from credit card offers, contest emails, and brand loyalty programs.

By using soft, playful materials to echo the language of corporate validation, the piece critiques how affirmation is often tied to performance and consumption. Placed on the floor—where praise becomes something to walk over—it quietly resists the scripted celebrations of institutional success and exposes the hollowness of belonging through purchase.