Taiwanese artist designs a gun that collects, freezes and shoots her tears, inspired by an argument with her teacher, Lifestyle News

Have you ever felt the strong urge to take revenge after someone hurt you to the point of tears?

Taiwanese artist Yi Fei Chen has done just that, and the incident inspired her to design a tool called the Tear Gun.

The device, created in 2016 and modified over the years, is able to collect, freeze and shoot her tears.

Fei Chen, She grew up in Taiwan and studied in the Netherlands and came up with the idea after arguing with her mentor over an assignment, she told AsiaOne in an interview on Monday (Nov 25).

“I felt very frustrated and angry, and burst into tears in front of my mentor,” Fei Chen said.

Spurred by the incident, she created the device with the intention of wanting to ‘shoot’ her tears at her mentor – perhaps a representation of the strong emotions the artist felt at the time.

“Even though I was crying, I still felt like I couldn’t just leave during the conversation,” she said.

Arguing was not an option for her either. Fei Chen, who grew up in Taiwan and refused to reveal her age, said she was taught to respect authority, and this meant disagreeing with teachers was considered rude.

The tear device was Fei Chen’s graduation project, and from the original idea, it took her three months to create the first “working product”.

The operation of the device is quite simple. After it collects her tears, it takes 20 seconds to freeze them and turn them into “bullets”.

Carbon dioxide, contained in a high-pressure bottle, is used to aid the process of freezing the tears. After the teardrop balls are formed, they are ejected from the device using a spring mechanism.

Fei Chen said that before moving forward with the project, she had to pitch the idea to the same teacher who inspired its creation – and he was actually very supportive.

“He was quite happy with the outcome, even though it was something against him,” she said.

She even gave a demonstration, using the device to shoot the same teacher in front of an audience of about twenty students and teachers.

“Everyone wanted to see me shoot the teacher,” she shared with a chuckle.

Fei Chen assured that the teacher had worn eye protection during this demonstration as a precaution and that the “bullets” could not cause much physical harm.

The Tear Gun was later exhibited at major events such as Dutch Design Week 2016 in the Netherlands, 100 Years of Dutch Design at the Taiwan Design Museum in 2016, and in 2017 at the Temporary Art Center Eindhoven during Dutch Design Week.

Over the years, Fei Chen has refined the device. During the pandemic, she came up with a third version, which is larger and contains two gas bottles that contain carbon dioxide.

Not for sale and not about revenge

While the Tear Gun seems like an invention that would be nice to have, you can’t actually buy one.

Fei Chen noted that apart from the one time she used it during a demonstration with her teacher, she has not used it against anyone else since.

The artist also clarified in an Instagram reel uploaded on October 9 that the tear gas is not about taking revenge.

“The tears are a kind of metaphor of yourself. You find another angle, another method to make yourself stronger or more powerful. But in a way that keeps you who you are,” she explained.

Although the device was first created eight years ago, it has recently gained renewed attention on social media.

Fei Chen’s invention and the story behind its creation appeared on a Facebook page called Enigma Elysium on November 6, with more than 31,000 likes and 2,700 comments.

The reactions are mixed; some have praised Fei Chen for her innovative creation.

Others have also said they need something like this in their lives.

However, the Tear Gun concept received some criticism, with one user saying that Fei Chen should have been “responsible” for her own actions.

Another pointed out that Fei Chen should have carried out her assignment well and that using the Tear Gun “to get revenge” seemed like “a lot of trouble.”

And since the device is a weapon of sorts, we had to wonder: Has she ever received any feedback or criticism that might promote violence? Fei Chen told us she didn’t.

Other projects in the pipeline

Fei Chen doesn’t just stop at the Tear Gun; she has other creations in the pipeline that she is excited about.

One of these is Excuse Me, a chair she describes as a “social escape tool.”

On top of the chair is an inflated balloon, which the user must “feed” it with water.

When the user is given water, he or she has an excuse to leave the room.

If the user does not water the balloon enough and remains on it, it will explode, releasing thousands of Styrofoam balls into the air.

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