The Painted Skin 画皮 Neckpiece by Yiqi Sun, OCADU
Title: The Painted Skin 画皮
Materials: Silver, cotton, stainless steel. W 16 cm x H 50 cm, 2025.
Inspired by The Painted Skin (Huapi) by Pu Songling in 1740, a scholar Wang shelters a beautiful young woman despite his wife Chen’s warnings. A priest later reveals that the woman is a demon in disguise, but Wang refuses to believe him. Soon after, he witnesses her painting and fitting a lifelike human skin over her monstrous body. Terrified, Wang returns with the priest to confront and kill her, but only enraged her to murder him instead. Then, Chen attempted to save her husband, endures humiliation and hardship while seeking help, and Wang is eventually brought back to life.
I designed a locket featuring a serene female face on the outside and a demon’s face hidden beneath it, symbolizing how women are often judged through conflicting societal expectations: Beauty is desired yet feared; tameness is undesired but expendable. On the back of the pendant, there is a second locket with an empty compartment meant to hold a small personal item chosen by the wearer—something known only to them. This hidden space serves as a reminder that how we understand and value ourselves is just as important, if not more so, than how others perceive us, and that our identities do not need to be constantly displayed or validated by others.
