By employing her own body as a medium, artist Yeh Yi-Li transforms herself into characters such as a brave soldier, fairy or strange creature who could travel through time and space, wandering between the urban and the suburbs. Yeh’s early creations were mostly video art and performance art. She tells a story that is between reality and fiction, telling the powerless resistance to the environmental space and the passage of time. By playing different characters, she has the instinct to create. She tries to disassemble the interpersonal relationship issues arising from the phenomenon of subculture and popular culture, exploring the phenomenon of interpersonal alienation and paradoxical interaction in contemporary society. By drifting between reality and imagination, Yeh leads the audience to explore various aspects of contemporary society through behavioural videos. For Yeh, "creating" is like "playing", and the process is the most important part of the entire artistic creation.
In her early works, Yeh focused on video creation and performance art. Later, she began to turn to ceramic sculptures, adding existing objects such as daily objects or lego toys, fusing traditional ceramic materials with modern products. This allows her work to add a touch of fun and novelty.
In her sculptures, the artist attempts to add the modern aspects to the traditional ceramic media; for example, adding the materials of ready-made objects. The artist believes that the stacking process is similar to playing legos. She could create a specific shape of work and it can be modified at any time. The building blocks embody the concept that everyone can sculpt. Creating by using plastic building blocks and ceramic sculptures may weaken the particularity of the artwork, but the building blocks are close to everyone’ daily life. It presents a collective identity and resonance for the public. Thus, the artist raises a question as to whether the indifference of the "fast culture" is replacing the individual differences of the old culture, and the unique civilization is gradually withering.
"I make a scene from the existing things, and create things in the existing scenes."
Yeh attempts to record the remaining clips when time flies. In reality, the scenes in memory are reset, and she tries to reconstruct the afterimages in her brain by creating. Like, the Zen in the woods, the animals in the mountains and wilderness, or even the pure white but now dying north and south poles are all beautiful memories in her mind. This forms a strong contrast with her real life. The splendid scenery is her escape from reality.
Yeh Yi-Li, graduated from Taipei National University of Art. She has the rich experience of being an international artist-in-residence. Also, she was invited to Future Pass, the official collateral event of 54th International Art Exhibition, Venice, Italy; International Ceramic Triennial UNICUM 2018 at National Museum of Slovenija-Metelkova, Ljubljana, Slovenija; 29th Festival Les Instants Vidéo”, Friche la Belle de Mai, Marseilles, France. Her works are collected by personal collectors as well as by the National Museum Of Slovenija-Metelkova, Ssamziespace, Korea, the Taiwan Art Bank, the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, and Taitung Art Museum.
More works: http://www.yicollecta.com/en/collections/57
Photos ©️ Yeh Yi-Li & YIART
