Yuqing Wu
Jewellery & Metal MA
Royal College of Art
Specialisms: Jewelry / Silversmithing / Accessories
Location: London, United Kingdom
Yuqing Wu
First Name: Yuqing
Last Name: Wu
Specialisms: Jewelry / Silversmithing / Accessories
Sectors: Fine Art/Photography/Craft / Fine Art/Photography/Craft / Fashion/Textiles/Accessories
My Location: London, United Kingdom
University / College: Royal College of Art
Course / Program Title: Jewellery & Metal MA
About
Yuqing is a jeweller from China. Their knowledge of jewellery originates from the family business that has been run since their parents. From birth, they have been exposed to classic commercial jewellery. When Yuqing was a child, they were deeply influenced by the exquisite craftsmanship of commercial jewellery and the rigorous production process of the factory. They began to study in a business school in the United States in 2015. They mainly studied economics, finance, management and so on. But at the same time, they also felt strongly inspired by the huge cultural and aesthetic differences between China and the United States. They began to frequently browse major museums and galleries, trying to gain insight into art from its history and popularity. As a Generation Z designer, Yuqing's understanding of jewellery challenges their parents' traditional commercial jewellery. They believe that the charm of jewellery should not be limited to materials and craftsmanship, or manipulated by capital and consumption. Jewellery, as an independent form of artistic expression, should be pure and self-expressive.
The focus of Yuqing's work is ‘anti-digitisation’. The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic is forcing almost everyone on the planet to learn to survive in the world of the Internet. Digital art, virtual universes, and artificial intelligence have built a world in which humans can access everything as long as they have digital devices. Yuqing also tried to use artificial intelligence and a parametric design process to generate jewellery pieces in the first year of their MA at RCA. But the emptiness that followed made them reflect. Can virtual art really bring you satisfaction? Or are you just forcing yourself to learn this software in order to keep up with the fashion? When doubts started to arise in their mind, they tried to change. If traditional craftsmanship were used to create a piece of jewellery that existed on a phone/computer screen, what would it look like? What if the pictures on a mobile phone actually existed in real life? What if humans really lived in a flat world with only XY axes? Yuqing attempts to restore the normal process by which human beings obtain information online, and to restore the image information to the physical existence of 3D objects made of copper/silver. When these objects are actually made, you will notice their size, shape, and how incompatible they are with the real world.