The Comfort of Home: Exploring Chinese Cuisine in Flushing
The aim of this project focuses on the rich diversity of Chinese food in Flushing and examines how it fosters a sense of home and belonging for the Chinese community. Through the pictures we took in Downtown Flushing, we highlight the regional variety and cultural significance of these dishes, which help us understand the ways in which food connects individuals to their heritage while shaping Flushing’s identity as a cultural hub.
In order to explore Flushing and its role in preserving or displaying Chinese culture, we created a fictional story that surrounds a Chinese American girl named Laura. Laura is born from two Chinese immigrant parents and struggles with her hybrid cultural identity but finds comfort in Flushing’s Chinese cuisine. We wrote journal entries from her perspective narrating different times in her life where her identity came into play. Then, we selected quotes we felt best elaborated on the photos we took.
We imagine our journal is Laura’s lost journal, and we are detectives who uncovered it and must decipher it.