Liu Jiajing
China
Born in Hunan in 1984. Liu received her Master’s degree from the School of Intermedia Art at China Academy of Art in 2010, and her doctor’s degree from the Department of Fiber Art in 2019. She currently teaches at the School of Sculpture and Public Art at Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, and is a member of China Sculpture Institute. Her works cover multiple art forms, including textile art, multimedia devices, and community art.
The Love Letter of Penelope
Metal wire, electric wire, shuttle, iron plate, light bulb, steel wire rope, motor device
Variable size
2019
This creation takes inspiration from the story of Penelope in Homer's Odyssey and tells the story of woman and time, body and loom, consumption and growth. In the story, the loom becomes the controlling link in Penelope's timeline, and the fabric signifies frozen time. The signposts with their two-way arrows, the recurring texts, the lights that go on and off, the arrowheads and shuttles that become metronomes all point to the long, repetitive, tedious and inescapable experience of time spent in weaving. The same temporal strategy is employed in the weaving of tapestries. The slow progression of the weaving and the faces aging in the process create an imperceptible correlation between the fabric and the body. The 10,000 shuttle wall hangings are shaped with wire, and incorporate a mixture of images of the grandmother, the mother and the self. The faces of the three generations all share subtle similarities and constantly become more and more worn down. Silent currents pass between the warp and the weft and the shared bloodline, displaying subtle and sensitive emotions that are untouchable and off-limits to the onlookers but make them tingle all the same.
The Love Letter of Penelope
Metal wire, electric wire, shuttle, iron plate, light bulb, steel wire rope, motor device
Variable size
2019
This creation takes inspiration from the story of Penelope in Homer's Odyssey and tells the story of woman and time, body and loom, consumption and growth. In the story, the loom becomes the controlling link in Penelope's timeline, and the fabric signifies frozen time. The signposts with their two-way arrows, the recurring texts, the lights that go on and off, the arrowheads and shuttles that become metronomes all point to the long, repetitive, tedious and inescapable experience of time spent in weaving. The same temporal strategy is employed in the weaving of tapestries. The slow progression of the weaving and the faces aging in the process create an imperceptible correlation between the fabric and the body. The 10,000 shuttle wall hangings are shaped with wire, and incorporate a mixture of images of the grandmother, the mother and the self. The faces of the three generations all share subtle similarities and constantly become more and more worn down. Silent currents pass between the warp and the weft and the shared bloodline, displaying subtle and sensitive emotions that are untouchable and off-limits to the onlookers but make them tingle all the same.
The Love Letter of Penelope
Metal wire, electric wire, shuttle, iron plate, light bulb, steel wire rope, motor device
Variable size
2019
This creation takes inspiration from the story of Penelope in Homer's Odyssey and tells the story of woman and time, body and loom, consumption and growth. In the story, the loom becomes the controlling link in Penelope's timeline, and the fabric signifies frozen time. The signposts with their two-way arrows, the recurring texts, the lights that go on and off, the arrowheads and shuttles that become metronomes all point to the long, repetitive, tedious and inescapable experience of time spent in weaving. The same temporal strategy is employed in the weaving of tapestries. The slow progression of the weaving and the faces aging in the process create an imperceptible correlation between the fabric and the body. The 10,000 shuttle wall hangings are shaped with wire, and incorporate a mixture of images of the grandmother, the mother and the self. The faces of the three generations all share subtle similarities and constantly become more and more worn down. Silent currents pass between the warp and the weft and the shared bloodline, displaying subtle and sensitive emotions that are untouchable and off-limits to the onlookers but make them tingle all the same.
