During the workshop, I invited participants to draw or describe items they would want to burn for their deceased loved ones or, alternatively, items they might want to burn for themselves in advance. The idea was to test how people felt about transforming the traditional paper-burning ritual at funerals into a more interactive and emotionally expressive process.
To my surprise, everyone participated enthusiastically, creating drawings and descriptions of the paper items they hoped to burn. In the final feedback session, participants shared their thoughts on the experience. While traditional funerals often involve burning paper as a way to express emotional connection, the concept of a “Heaven and Earth Bank” resonated strongly with them. The idea of an underworld bank storing and distributing the items and money burned by the living sparked a lot of interest. Participants suggested that adding the element of a bank counter, where cherished items for loved ones or oneself could be symbolically “deposited,” might make the ritual even more meaningful.
I was quickly inspired by this feedback. I decided to scan the items participants had drawn and, using a receipt-style design, created personalized certificates as proof that their burned items were officially “deposited” into the Heaven and Earth Bank. This approach not only preserved their creations but also added an interactive and symbolic dimension to the entire process.