[30] Eat Duck (2026) by Mud Rock Ceramics

Mud Rock Ceramics’ Michelle describes her work and creative process:

I remember watching this play years ago, and it was this repetitive act of folding funeral money by Karen Tan as the character sat at the ‘void deck’ working through the emotions and tasks while she grieved. This particular scene, almost synonymous with Chinese funerals, stuck with me because for the first time I was seeing it in the comfort of a theatre, aircon and cushy seats, far removed from the environment it normally takes place in. Then this year in July, an aunt I was very close to passed away in K.L. After rushing over and doing all the necessary things for the wake, one by one as other relatives arrived, they would join me in placing these silver and gold-coated paper. Now and then, a relative would joke, Emily will finally have lots of money to spend. My aunt Emily also loved duck btw.

24K gold leaf on pearl glaze applied on the rectangular vase; it is not just gold that glitters here but also the crystalline formation on the outside surface and glass inside. This vase has an intentional low and wide base so we can look inside to see the floor of glass made with a recycled wine bottle.

Specifications:
– Medium: Stoneware, recycled wine bottle glass floor, 24K gold leaf on pearl glaze, reduction-fired
– Dimensions: 24 x 13 x 11.5 cm (L x B x H cm)
– Auction winner will receive a physical certificate of confirmation. We will reach out within 5 working days after the event to make delivery arrangements.

About Eat Duck:
Eat Duck by Zenda Tan delivers a beautiful and incisive portrayal of family dynamics fraught with grief and past grievances. During Grandma’s seven-day wake at the void deck, clashing siblings, long-suffering in-laws, and estranged sons come together to hurt and heal when their world is upended. As they navigate unfamiliar rites and funeral rituals, they discover that food, offerings, and joss paper have become the currency of their love.

Eat Duck lays bare everyday realities while offering extraordinary insights into the nature of love and loss, helping us all to answer what it truly means to be kin. Eat Duck was a collaboration with School of the Arts Singapore.

“Layered and complex …The lovely combination of humour and truth really spoke to me… EAT DUCK brought important discussions to the table about family, relationships and loss.”

— Popspoken, Dawn Teo

About Mud Rock Ceramics:
Mud Rock is a ceramic studio based in Singapore, founded by ceramics artists Ng Seok Har and Michelle Lim, who have each been practising ceramics professionally for over 17 years.

We are makers of mud and clay who bond over the love of beautiful ceramics that serve us daily. From multiple bowls to a single sculpture, we find a never-ending joy in making, exploring and serving with clay.

With our own kilns, glaze laboratory and equipment, we are able to produce works, glaze formulas and even clay types for specific needs. Though dedicated to our craft, we believe in collaborations to see how our medium can complement others and to learn from those experiences.

Our current clientele comprises restaurants, design companies, architecture firms, government bodies, corporate organisations, and the quirky individual. With over 14 years of experience in the ceramics industry locally and internationally, we provide consultation on various ceramics projects as well.

With tongue-in-cheek, Mud Rock is named in reference to the local sub-culture of ‘Mat Rok’ in Singapore, as ceramic craft too is often teased as a sub-culture of the Arts. Michelle Lim and Ng Seok Har both fell in love with pottery on their individual journeys before coming together.

Driven by a lifelong love for the arts, Ng Seok Har left the banking industry to reinvest and develop her skills in ceramics making. Her journey in pottery started in Tokyo, Japan. Returning to Singapore, she continued her training intensively with a local potter, Jaqueline Low, before taking on an apprenticeship with a Thai ceramics production house under the guidance of the renowned Thai master, Somluk Pantiboon. Since then, Seok has been a full-time potter in Mud Rock and has exhibited locally and internationally as well.

As a professional ceramicist, craftsperson and maker, Michelle is versatile and cross-disciplinary. She has been an industrial designer and educator of youth at risk, for which she has received awards, and has exhibited in several local and international solo and group ceramic shows. During her Ceramics Degree, she was awarded the much-coveted Sir Geoffrey Yeend Scholarship, and completed her Bachelor’s majoring in Ceramics with First Class Honours at the Australian National University. She has been practising ceramics for over 15 years now. As the co-founder of Awaken the Dragon, Singapore’s ceramics festival, Michelle has given TED talks on Ceramics in Singapore and also guest lectured at Art and Design schools in Singapore.

“To hear Ng Seok Har and Michelle Lim talk about pottery is to experience love. They wax lyrical about how a vase is made, from the kneading and throwing of the clay, to bestowing it a form on the wheel, till it’s baptised by fire in the kiln.”

— “Obsessed Much: Ceramics” by Esquire Singapore

Mud Rock Ceramics Founders describe their work and creative process:

“If we can’t appreciate the beauty and craft behind a cup we use and hold to our lips daily, how can we understand fine art cases in museums?” [Mud Rock Ceramics] wanted to show others a connection between ceramics as a functional utility and an artistic object.

— Tatler Asia