Hong Kong artists, Kingsley Ng and Stephanie Cheung transform everyday materials into poetic, sensory experiences, exploring themes of migration, belonging and connection. This project A Sea of Words is an evolution of their earlier installation Over The Ocean, which premiered in Hong Kong in 2017.

This participatory project begins with Kingsley and Stephanie visiting communities to collect ocean-related stories which then be shape the participatory experience they create.

Visitors to the event tune in to a sea of words penned by people from local communities, listening, reading and imagining voyages of life and setting off their own paper boats in a microscopic ocean. As these little boats cross paths on illuminated waves and touch off resounding notes, people from all walks of life share a moment of togetherness. Beyond spectacle, the work is a space for diverse communities to come together for art-mediated conversations.

This site-responsive work builds on an artistic dialogue that began in Hong Kong, when our Artistic Director Rachel first connected with the artists through a UK / Hong Kong arts exchange trip. Their exploratory visit to the Solent region in 2023 further deepened the collaboration, as they engaged with local sites and histories to inform the project’s development.

A Sea of Words for Portsmouth was part of the Arts Council England supported 432 Nomads Our Sanctuary: Ocean of Voices programme – a cultural initiative celebrating migration, storytelling, and community voices across Portsmouth from June to October 2025.

Supported by Arts Council England, Hong Kong Arts Development Council and Portsmouth City Council with partners Portsmouth Historic Quarter, Portsmouth Creates, Aspex Portsmouth, Sustainable Conservation Trust and Portsmouth City of Sanctuary

This project formed part of Crying Out Loud’s Solent Cultural Collaborations and Solent Stories programmes.