An art project by Xingyi Lin Chen that explores the collective memory of the Chinese diaspora in the Basque Country from an intimate, emotional and deeply human perspective. Starting from the everyday question ‘Have you eaten yet?’, a traditional Chinese greeting that expresses care and affection beyond its literal meaning, the installation becomes a gateway to stories of migration, rootedness and identity.

The exhibition presents an emotional archive built around food as a language of care and a vehicle for cultural transmission, connecting different generations of Chinese people in the Basque Country and gathering diverse experiences. In this way, it highlights the family, community and emotional ties that underpin the migratory experience. In this context, the Chinese term “华侨” (huáqiáo), which literally means “overseas Chinese”, refers both to the historical relationship with the sea and to journeys made by boat to new destinations.

The project stems from a personal and intimate motivation, inspired by the link between the artist’s family history and Chinese migration to the Basque Country in the 1990s. This allows the artist to explore the subject from a perspective rooted in introspection and intimacy. It was first exhibited at La Perrera, as part of the Konekta Ideiak ICC+IA call for proposals organised by the Youth Department of Bilbao City Council, under the mentorship of Miren Lauzirika

The installation brings these experiences to life through a visual projection that combines video mapping and reactive audio systems, creating a space for intercultural dialogue, memory and remembrance. At the heart of the work are the voices of people from the Chinese diaspora in the Basque Country —from different generations, backgrounds and experiences, including adoption— from which the various elements emerge: a documentary video, a plate serving as a projection surface where memories are transformed into image and movement with a soundscape created in collaboration with the producer and singer Mina Qiu, and a series of personal objects loaned by the participants which, once digitised and modelled in 3D, reflect on what is preserved, what is lost and what is transformed when memory changes medium.