This project is intended to create a discussion about reclaiming what we once had but have now lost over time. Inspired by the clouds, which change but never die – in contrast to the human body which changes but ultimately dies – this project is about body image and how ideals change and warp with time.

Using ideologies researched from the Tang Dynasty and how their aesthetics differ quite largely from our own modern ideas, this project opens a conversation about body image and the near-impossible beauty standards women strive to reach thanks to the advent of technology among several other things.

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The Chinese idiom 环肥燕瘦 (Huan Fei Yan Shou) literally means, “Yang Yuhuan’s chubbiness is as beautiful as Zhao Feiyan’s slenderness.” This indicates the aesthetic differences of the Tang Dynasty compared to now. The voluptuous cloud lady is created to express that different body types have their own aesthetics, and people should embrace their uniqueness rather than follow contemporary ideals.

We should look to our past to remember what we may have lost to time in the future – in this case, being more open-minded to body image and beauty standards that have been lost and which we should employ once again.

Within my work both repoussé and enamel are employed because they represent traditional metal techniques of the traditional period. And iridescent Perspex and clear VIVAK are adopted with vacuum forming techniques to create a sense of dreaming and attraction, meanwhile also representing contemporary materials, techniques and the contemporary period.

Voluptuous Cloud Lady Necklace Series, 2021  
copper, enamel, lustre, stainless steel-wire, iridescent Perspex, clear VIVAK  

Voluptuous Cloud Necklace No.1 (Enamel), 2021
copper, enamel, lustre, stainless steel-wire