M^u: A jewelry brand inspired by the stories of different communities

Designed and Hand-Crafted by Cecilia HyunJae Cho

M^u (pronounced: em-power-you) is a handmade jewelry brand conceived to empower and transform. Cecilia HyunJae Cho designed all components of this brand to cultivate physical and mental positive energy. M^u will release different collections inspired by a specific issue or community interests.

The first collection from M^u takes inspiration from the anecdotes of Third Culture Kids (TCK). TCKs are those raised in cultures different from their birth or ethnic culture. While this lifestyle promotes a well- founded worldview and kinship with various cultures, it comes with its share of obstacles. For instance, TCKs face the deep-seated conflict of identity that stems from the insecurity of cultural values.

The stories of TCKs have been transformed—by design—into ‘amulets’ for beauty and protection. The pieces in the TCK collection seek to ease the friction between clashing ideologies, values, and identities through a visual manifestation of coexisting elements of culture. Furthermore, wearing the pieces will have a physical and mental realization aligned with the mission of M^u.

wandering

Young May Yee’s life gets a 360° makeover when she is given a chance to go to the sunny Singapore for a much brighter future. But with an opportunity this grand, can she really keep up with what she is expected to become?

‘wandering’ is a semi-autobiographical graphic novel that follows May Yee, a young Burmese TCK coming to terms with her identity and the relationships with people around her, shaped by her experiences of living in Myanmar in the early 2000s and then moving to Singapore with her family. The story will be told through different perspectives, from both May Yee and her immigrant family in different print formats and sizes, and each of these works will be inspired in terms of form and narrative content by items from Burmese visual culture. Through these visual and narrative elements, ‘wandering’ hopes to communicate a more personal and unique experience of moving from Myanmar, while addressing the universal TCK experiences of growing up in two countries at the same time.