Chinese Mole: WHO GETS THE BEST FORTUNE? (Work in progress)

<Chinese Moles: WHO GETS THE BEST FORTUNE?> explores the complexities of identity, chance, and the intertwining of technology with human experience.
The piece presents a series of 12 similar portraits: only one, however, is a real photograph and the remaining images are generated using AI. The focus is on the moles in various places on each subject's face. In Chinese culture, moles can be seen as indicators of a person's fate with their location believed to reveal insights into one’s personality, luck, and future. The moles become a kind of map or an unpredictable guide for their life path. Just as AI generates images that appear random but carry underlying patterns, moles on the body are similarly perceived as random, yet with personal significance. The connection of real and AI-generated imagery to invite reflection on the randomness of existence and how both human experience and artificial systems try to impose meaning on destiny. The contrast between the organic nature of the real photograph and the AI-generated one emphasizes the fine line between reality and artifice because at a glance, it is difficult to distinguish between the two.
Ultimately, the work prompts viewers to question how randomness, whether in nature or technology, can shape and define our understanding of the world around us. At the same time, it also discusses, in a satirical tone, the “control” of traditional Chinese folk culture over people's destinies.