Jane Yuan

My recent work stems from an essay that I wrote in an Ancient Chinese poetry class about shadows and darkness, pointing to how darkness can represent a good omen when it is complemented by light, which is the metaphor for heaven. I am now exploring this theme in a series of multi-disciplinary works that reflect on Chinese and Japanese cultural representations of the human figure. My preferred medium is drawing which is manifested in many forms including cut fabric, which brings literary and performative aspects into the foreground. Always, I emphasize the use of black and white gray-scale, so as to emphasize the drama of light and dark undistracted by other colors, as if to suggest a separation from the world of the Gods.

​

Many of my works represent Japanese performers in Kabuki dance-dramas. These performances originated with a woman named Izumo no Okuni. When Kabuki dramas were first staged, the performers were all female, playing both male and female roles. I also use images of traditional Japanese geishas in my work. The geisha’s role was to entertain men by performing and singing, transforming themselves into models of beauty. My recent work seeks to reveal how we are still haunted by their “herstorical” ghosts.