Gazing out at us over a bowl of soup, the figure in Daniel B Dias’ The Blue Mark seems to be distracted by what he sees while he eats a noodle connected to two other figures who appear to be coming out of a soup cup. The “blue mark” is a common birthmark found on newborns and is significant in Chinese culture, as it is believed to be caused by the push of the Buddhist goddess of childbirth because the baby didn’t want to leave its mother’s womb. In Dias’ piece, the blue mark could be meant to signify how the figure still feels connected to the world he’s always known, if not held back by a thread. Yet he gazes forward at the viewer as if he’s conflicted with the urge to move on. Dias' piece draws on a visual language that explores identity and the forces that push and pull it until it becomes comfortably our own.