First Breath

First Breath is inspired by the Daoist vision of creation, drawn from Chapter 42 of the Dao Te Ching: “Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, Three gives birth to all things” (道生一，一生二，二生三，三生万物). The work captures the universe’s first breath, the emergence of Qi (气), when the void transforms into form.

The composition flows vertically like an axis between Heaven and Earth. An expanse of emptiness at the top suggests the formless Dao. At the centre, textured layers and a golden vein express the union and tension of opposites: the first division into Yin and Yang, with blue and red symbolising water and fire. The lower section reveals the beginnings of material existence, where mountains rise and waters stir.

In the chaos of today’s world, where boundaries dissolve and the opposites collide, creation often collapses into destruction. The piece recalls the first breath, a force of balance, renewal, and genesis. It reminds us that the same breath which once stirred the cosmos continues to move through us endlessly. Even in moments of fracture, there resides the power to begin again.