Deeply affected by the tragic spate of deaths within Singapore’s national service over the 14 months, artist and designer duo ZZ launched a project on Wednesday that would commemorate their memories: funeral mourning pins in the style of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF)’s pixelated green uniforms.
In traditional Chinese culture, pins known as “xiao” are worn on the shirt sleeves of the mourners for a period of time. These mourning pins consist of small pieces of cloth (about 3.5cm by 2cm) and are worn on the left side if the deceased is male, or the right side if the deceased is female. According to the Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations, these mourning pins would be worn for up to three years in traditional China, but in Singapore, they are typically worn for 49 or 100 days.
ZZ — made up of creatives Lim Zeherng and Lim Zeharn — intended to make a statement by modifying traditional mourning pins as a “silent act for greater accountability and transparency in the SAF”. The pins are even slotted in small plastic sachets, akin to packaged items bought from the SAF surplus shop.
“…it brings into question the recurrence of NSF deaths during peacetime operations, as the norm or even a ‘necessary sacrifice,” ZZ wrote in a Facebook post and in the caption of the product’s description on their website.
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