Rice for Thoughts grew out of Lin Chuan-Chu’s reflections on the idea of “motherland” during his years in the United States. Watching his young son grow up abroad, he came to realize that language and ways of life may change, while one’s connection to the land of home remains deeply embedded in memory. Having grown up in a farming family and spent many years doing agricultural work himself, Lin began to bring cultivation back into his artistic practice.

The work unfolds over the course of a single rice-growing season. Following the agricultural calendar, Lin prepares the land, sows seeds, transplants seedlings, tends the field, and harvests the crop. By bringing farmland, field paths, and a working space into an urban setting, the project allows passersby to witness the changing rice field through the seasons. For Lin, farming itself becomes a form of performance: the artist takes on the role of a farmer, using physical labor to convey an embodied experience of the land.

Rice for Thoughts transforms personal memories of rural life into a shared experience of land. It responds to the disappearance of familiar landscapes under rapid urbanization, while also seeking to pass on an awareness of land, food, and seasonal rhythms to the next generation.