10 Questions with Yibo Wan

Yibo is a visual artist and jewellery designer currently based in London. Her multidisciplinary practice spans moving image, visual art, and sculptural jewellery, exploring the nuanced connections between human emotions, perception, and the body's interaction with its surroundings. Through core narratives and a focus on the complexity of fleeting moments, her work delves into subtle psychological experiences and constructs immersive emotional landscapes, resonating with themes of identity, memory, and transformation.

Yibo's work has been featured internationally, reflecting her growing influence in the art world. Recent achievements include her selection as a winner in the 2.5 Urban Chroma Art Film Festival (2024) in Miami, where her visual art was showcased during the Miami Art Season as part of a public art project. She was also nominated for the Loneliness and Poetics art competition at Gallery NAT (2024) in London, receiving a Nomination Award for her contributions to visual art. Her works were recently exhibited in the Annual Open 2024 at Southwark Park Galleries, London, UK, and will be presented in Contacts and Connections (opening February 2025) with Loosen Art in Rome, Italy, highlighting her growing presence in both local and international art scenes.

@yibo.wn

ARTIST STATEMENT

Yibo’s work navigates the intricate layers of emotional landscapes, where fleeting moments and cycles of transformation take form. These landscapes exist in a state of flux, dissolving and reemerging as one moves through them. Each step marks a transition—a shift from one emotion to another, from memory to presence. Her practice captures the delicate thresholds where boundaries blur, and dualities—such as connection and detachment, stillness and motion—intertwine and transform.

Through an exploration of sequences, their inherent randomness, and the construction of scenes, immersive emotional landscapes emerge as a core framework within the practice. These landscapes are not static; they are dynamic and fluid, evolving through the interplay of tension and harmony. It is within these liminal spaces, the soft yet dynamic intersections between moments, that her work finds resonance, offering a profound reflection on the complexity and fluidity of human experience.

Reverberation, Digital, 53×29.7 cm, 2024 © Yibo Wan

INTERVIEW

Can you tell us about your journey as an artist and jewellery designer? What led you to explore these creative fields?

I've always been a deeply sensitive person, constantly aware of everything around me. It often feels as though I can instantly sense a multitude of emotions, details, and connections all at once. While this heightened sensitivity can be a gift, it's also overwhelming at times—like carrying a weight that's hard to put down. I need to express it. Creating is how I process and make sense of this constant flow of perception, and it's what naturally led me to the path of an artist and a designer.
My journey began in visual art, where I worked primarily with ephemeral forms to explore transient feelings. But over time, I found myself drawn to the concept of a 'scene.' Each piece I created seemed to emerge from a core narrative that linked emotions, memories, and contradictions. Eventually, I took these ideas beyond the intangible. I wanted to work with physical materials, to bring these emotions into something I could touch and feel—but I started small.
This is where sculptural jewellery entered my practice. Unlike other forms of art, jewellery is deeply tied to the body—it doesn't just sit on it; it interacts with it and transforms it. My work has always been rooted in intangible experiences, and jewellery's intimate connection with the body felt like a natural way to explore these ideas.
When I started working with 'scenes,' they often lacked a human presence. Instead, sculptural forms and structures dominated the space, acting almost like props. Over time, the idea of a character began to emerge within these scenes, and because these forms were so closely tied to the body, it became inevitable for me to explore jewellery as a medium—its scale, its intimacy, and its ability to transform the body felt like the perfect complement to my narratives.
Now, my practice moves between visual art and jewellery design, with both feeding into and transforming each other. Jewellery gives me a way to create deeply personal, tactile pieces, while visual art allows me to place those pieces within broader narratives. They let me explore the connection between memory, transformation, and the body in ways that feel true to who I am.

How has your international presence, from London to Miami and Rome, shaped your perspective as an artist?

London feels like my second home and has been pivotal to my artistic journey. The city's immense scale and constant activity, where countless events unfold simultaneously, have shaped how I perceive and process my surroundings. London sharpens my awareness—a place where I can feel its energy (being part of it) while quietly observing its complexities. This duality has profoundly influenced my early concepts, themes, and creative approaches, making London a significant foundation for my creative practice.
In Miami, I experienced something different. My project there was part of a public exhibition, with my visual art displayed at urban transit hubs, engaging directly with the surrounding environment and its audience. It was my first opportunity to showcase visual art outside the confines of a gallery, and I found that my surreal and abstract style resonated surprisingly well with Miami's organic and lively surroundings. This experience opened my eyes to new possibilities—how a piece can transcend traditional spaces and exist harmoniously within real-world scenes. It has inspired me to explore more outdoor and public exhibitions in the future.
Rome, on the other hand, offered a reflective experience. The exhibition I participated in aligned closely with the core themes I've been exploring in my practice, making it a significant affirmation of my artistic direction. Being part of a group exhibition with diverse visual art forms allowed me to connect with other artists and gain insight into their processes and ideas.

Your practice spans moving images, visual art, and sculptural jewellery. How do these mediums interact in your work?

My practice revolves around the concept of a 'scene,' which is not always a literal setting. It can be an abstract emotional landscape, a collection of fragmented memories, or even a narrative framework. These scenes often emerge from my direct responses to the world around me. Each medium I work with—moving images, visual art, or sculptural jewellery—serves to bring these narratives to life, complementing and enhancing one another to create a more complete experience.
For instance, in my work, Euphemeria, the narrative centers on Ophelia. Sculptural jewellery plays a key role here, as it physically embodies her sense of restraint and transforms her into a dynamic tableau. The choice of brass as a material is significant—it's tangible, unyielding, and contrasts with the softness of the human body. Over time, it oxidizes and changes, making the passage of time visible in a way that intangible mediums such as moving images or visual art cannot. This tactile quality invites the viewer to physically connect with the piece, experiencing both its permanence and fragility.
At the same time, moving images allow me to capture the cyclical nature of transformation in the narrative. The medium brings motion and life to the tableau, enabling Ophelia's eternal entrapment in a loop to be visualized. Without this interplay, key themes, like the fleeting yet eternal nature of beauty, would lose their depth.
I view each medium as a lens to examine different facets of the same concept. Together, they enhance the audience's experience, offering a layered understanding that bridges the tangible and the intangible, the abstract and the physical.

How do you choose which medium suits a project better? Does the choice stem from the concept, or is the final concept influenced by the technical and methodological aspects of the medium you want to work with?

It's a mix. Often, when I begin with an initial idea or concept, I already have a strong sense of which medium will suit it best and how it should be expressed. However, as the creative process unfolds, I might realize that a virtual visual approach struggles to fully capture certain aspects of the concept. In such cases, I turn to physical materials， which might inspire me to refine my understanding and discover new ways to apply virtual mediums. For me, the process opens a mystery box—unpredictable and exciting. I enjoy this interplay, which keeps my practice evolving and full of discovery.
That said, the core concept always remains intact. I believe that a strong piece of work stems from a balance where technique and concept complement and elevate each other. In a sense, I rely on the mediums themselves; they aren't just tools but collaborators and even teachers. Each medium brings its own characteristics and challenges, and engaging with them often reveals insights I might not have anticipated. This dialogue between concept and medium is what makes the creative process so fulfilling for me.

Your work captures fleeting moments and emotional transformations. How do you translate these complex ideas into visual and sculptural forms?

When capturing fleeting moments through visual art, my approach is instinctive and immediate. I focus on recreating the raw sensation of a particular moment using vibrant colours and layered textures. For instance, in Reverberation, I used the viscous qualities of slime, throwing it onto smooth surfaces and extracting the resulting shapes and patterns. Through post-production, I transformed these into vivid, intertwined layers of colour, capturing the fleeting essence of that moment in visual forms.
In contrast, when exploring moments tied to a specific narrative, I gravitate toward sculptural and physical forms. These narratives often demand a heightened sense of drama or clarity, shaping both the materials and structures. For example, I use sculptural jewellery to emphasize tension or restraint within a story, allowing the physicality of the medium to mirror the emotional weight of the narrative.

What role do randomness and sequence play in shaping the dynamic and fluid aspects of your art?

Randomness and sequence have been key to my artistic practice for the past four years and remain central to my work. I see these two concepts as fundamental to the structure of our world. From the microscopic level of genetic arrangements and material compositions to the macroscopic level of social constructs, randomness and sequence—seemingly opposing forces—are the essence of everything around us.
To me, randomness represents spontaneity and unpredictability, such as fleeting emotions, chance encounters, or the brief sight of a wildflower. Sequence, on the other hand, symbolizes the basic patterns we construct to make sense of these experiences, much like memory and identity. I believe everything is in a state of flux, existing not in fixed states but in thresholds, constantly shifting between these two forces. This tension between chaos and order is not only the foundation of my work's dynamic and fluid qualities but also reflects the nature of life itself.
In my art, this interplay is often expressed visually. For instance, in Euphemeria, brass structures represent sequence with their rigid, angular forms, while the performer's body embodies softness and unpredictability. Moving image captures the entire tableau as a dynamic, flowing narrative, transforming the scene into a living balance of randomness and sequence. I use a minimalistic yet impactful visual language—juxtaposing soft, organic movements against rigid, structured forms—to ensure these abstract concepts are both intellectually engaging and emotionally resonant.
This duality also manifests in my other works, such as Reverberation, where sequential patterns coexist with shapes generated through spontaneous actions. The results are a blend of deliberate order and intuitive expression, creating pieces that invite the viewer to experience the inherent tension and harmony.

Your work also explores dualities like connection and detachment or stillness and motion. How do these themes resonate with your personal experiences?

I believe art reflects the self and our perception of the outside. I often find myself in conflicting states—deeply connected to everything around me, as if part of an intricate web, yet simultaneously feeling detached and adrift, with nothing to anchor me.
This sense of uncertainty and being adrift fuels my creativity. It's through this state of instability that I find new ways to see and create. As an artist, opening myself fully to the external environment can be overwhelming, even unsettling, but it's also what allows me to explore dualities, such as connection and detachment, in a way that feels true to my experiences.

Seeds, Digital, 42×29.7 cm, 2023 © Yibo Wan

Memory and transformation are central to your work, too. How do these themes inspire and influence your artistic choices?

Memory is tied to specific moments, gaining meaning from the time it captures. Yet every time we revisit a memory, it shifts—reshaped, adding new layers to its meaning.
In my Reverberation and Sequence series, I tried to recreate emotions and memories from certain moments. Repeated patterns overlap, and new colours and shapes are generated, mirroring how memories evolve over time. As I revisit these works, I often ask myself: 'Did it really feel like that?' The essence stays the same, but details subtly change with each reconstruction.
The process itself reflects transformation. Starting with simple patterns, I layered them with semi-transparency, letting textures and lines emerge through overlap. This approach allows new visual elements to appear naturally, much like how memory evolves and builds upon itself, shaping the emotional tone of my work.

What are you most excited about for your upcoming exhibition, Contacts and Connections, in Rome?

What excites me most about Contacts and Connections is how the exhibition brings together different works under a shared theme. I'm curious to see how other artists interpret the idea of connection—whether through memory, relationships, or broader narratives—and how these interpretations might shift my own perspectives.
For me, Rome itself adds another layer of inspiration. It's a city where history and modernity constantly intersect. I feelincredibly fortunate to be able to contribute to this conversation through my work, especially in a place that has always felt so deeply inspiring to me.

Sequence, Digital, 53×29.7 cm, 2024 © Yibo Wan

Lastly, looking ahead, are there new mediums, concepts, or collaborations you're eager to explore?

My work will continue to centre around the concept of a 'scene'—or what I often think of as a 'narrative landscape', a dynamic space where different elements, materials, and ideas coexist and interact. This concept has been the central of my practice, and I'm eager to explore it further through new approaches.
One direction I'm particularly excited about is generative art. My work has focused on exploring various forms of visual art over the past few years, often integrating narratives and performative elements. However, I haven't yet delved into algorithm-driven creation, and I'm curious about how generative processes might engage with my central themes.
For example, how might algorithms not only influence the visual structure of a narrative but also interact with the performative aspects of my work? Could they redefine how I approach a 'scene,' introducing new layers of randomness or precision? Meanwhile, I'm intrigued by how these technology-driven methods might complement the mediums I already use. Rather than replacing traditional approaches, I see this as an opportunity to create unexpected connections and contrasts, expanding the scope of my landscapes and opening up new possibilities for expression.
As a cross-media visual artist based in London, I see this as an opportunity to engage with and further enrich the UK's creative ecosystem. London is a unique hub for collaboration and innovation, and I hope to connect with more artists, technologists, and institutions to push the boundaries of what a narrative landscape can be.

Artist’s Talk

Al-Tiba9 Interviews is a promotional platform for artists to articulate their vision and engage them with our diverse readership through a published art dialogue. The artists are interviewed by Mohamed Benhadj, the founder & curator of Al-Tiba9, to highlight their artistic careers and introduce them to the international contemporary art scene across our vast network of museums, galleries, art professionals, art dealers, collectors, and art lovers across the globe.

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