Woman Crush Wednesday: Feiyi Wen
Interview by Shibei Xu
What is your idea to name this project “Under the Yuzu Tree”?
I suppose there are two ways to understand this. The first layer is the very simple appreciation towards the nature, as the image of yuzu tree has appeared in the series. Another layer is something to do with Etymology. As the word ‘yuzu’ originally derived from Chinese youzi, however the two words have subtle change of the meaning from each other due to the evolvement of the language itself. I am very interested in questioning what has been lost in translation.
I saw there are some old photos together with some new photos, I am not sure whether you make some of them look like vintage. Could you talk a little about your thoughts about combining them or overlapping them?
I use mixed material from different sources, such as postcards, paper ephemeral or family photographs. Mixing them up with my own photographic prints. Sometimes I use warm-tone paper to give it another kind of appearance. I think it is interesting to see how can I push the boundaries of materiality. It is important for me to create this space for audience to take their time to really look into the images.
This whole project makes me feel like reading a long travel diary, could you tell me how to make those photos have a consequence like that? What is your reference or do you have a timeline of that?
I am not sure if I am trying to present the sequences with a timeline, although time is a very important element in my work. If I am working with a book project the sequencing can be very different from working within the exhibition space. That being said, it is very much about if I can make that conversation (between the images) happen.
In the installation pictures, I saw you used different ways to present your photos. Some photos just simply taped on the wall, some of them with a frame and some of them printed on different materials. How do you think of that way to show your work?
Through working with group images, I have been developed a strong interest to explore the possibilities of each images from the series. Although the decision making sometimes can be purely intuitive, but it usually involves the combination of experiences and experiments. I believe that there are always multiple ways to present the same image, to give its own voice. It is important to not to be limited.
Describe your creative process in one word.
Continuity
If you could teach a one-hour class on anything, what would it be?
Methodology of making
What was the last book you read or film you saw that inspired you?
Winter in Sokcho by Elisa Shua Dusapin
What is the most played song in your music library?
Tokai-Taeko Onuki
How do you take your coffee?
Black Americano or with a little bit of oat milk
You can find more of Feiyi’s work here.