Yunzhu Chen
(she/her)
Yunzhu Chen is an MDes Photography student at the Glasgow School of Art. Her photographic practice explores the relationship between the body, measurement and standards. She is interested in how standards are created, how they are applied to the body, and how they influence the way we understand and judge ourselves.
ALMOST INVISIBLE
This project developed unexpectedly while I was working on Weights and Measures, as I experimented with different ways of photographing and constructing scenes.
At first, I did not plan to explore loneliness or isolation. However, while trying different spaces, body positions and lighting, I gradually noticed a strange feeling. The spaces seem to be made for people to communicate with each other, with sofas, tables, chairs and food creating a comfortable and familiar environment. Yet the figure always seems to be left outside of it.
This made me think about the feeling of being surrounded by people but finding it difficult to connect. Everyone seems to be getting closer to each other, while I am left outside of the relationship. This feeling of being ignored does not always come from direct rejection. Sometimes, no one notices you, waits for you to join, or realises that you have been there all along.
I began to bring this feeling into the photographs by placing the figure alone in spaces that suggest social interaction and everyday life. Through empty seats, repeated objects, distance and the stillness of the body, I wanted to show the feeling of I am here, but I do not feel like I am part of it.
The project is still developing. I want to continue experimenting with different spaces and situations, exploring why a person can still feel separated and ignored when surrounded by people or signs of everyday life.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
Weights and Measures explores how standards are created and applied. We use measurements every day to measure size, length, height and proportion, but these standards do not occur naturally. Measurement may appear to be an objective and accurate process, but standards themselves are created by people and social systems. They are made through tools such as rulers, measuring tapes and spirit levels.
Who decides what the standard is? Who decides what is normal, accurate or acceptable? Once a standard is established, why do we follow it? When these measuring tools are applied to the body, how do they affect the way we understand and judge ourselves?
In this project, I use photography as a medium and place measuring tools directly on or around the body. By using the tools in exaggerated ways and changing their relationship with the body, I create unusual interactions. This makes familiar and everyday acts of measurement feel unfamiliar.
