Aluminum Gray by Luran Huang

Artist list

Luran Huang

As a “science-majored” girl, she is particularly meticulous about every single detail of the exhibition. I can still recall that on a summer weekend, she came to Yongheng Hutong personally with a tape to measure the dimension of our exhibition space. After going back, she modeled the 3-dimensional structure of the entire gallery all by herself for the purpose of accurately conceiving the overall exhibition layout according to the actual on-site conditions such as the sizes of cupboards and display boards.

Luran’s usual identity is an ordinary office clerk. She works hard on her paid duties during the daytime, but after returning home, she would immerse herself into the enjoyment of creation in the night. This may be an ideal living state for young jewelry artists like her. Luran shares not only her works but also trivial affairs in her life with me. While slowly approaching her, she sometimes gives me an illusion that this world seems to be not so crucial, as it is still possible to realize the compatibility between the ideal and real-life using the only fragmented time for creation.

Although she complained:
My house is fully packed recently.
The table and floor are covered with all kinds of materials and components everywhere. I have to even stand on my feet to have take-out meal box.
Tomorrow is the weekend. I must eat some take-out food with my own bowl.
I love having food with a bowl.

This sounds a bit miserable. It might be difficult to solve the dilemma brought over by the preparation for the exhibition at the moment, but for her, eating with a bowl can produce a sense of happiness. The use of daily objects is able to give her psychological comfort and to heal (numb) her mental stress in such as a gentle and simple way. How important is a physical object to Luran?

I like ready-made products.
It’s fun to use the original appearance of an object as the base of jewelry to describe a sense of déjà vu.

This is her description about her new series of works. All the exhibited jewelries this time are made from second-hand aluminum kitchenware collected by Luran herself. I have been trying to persuade her to write some descriptions or creation ideas that are usually needed for an exhibition, but soon I found that it is difficult to connect her words into any complete and logical description. What she can do is to speak with her works.

I always rely on instant inspirations to make things.
I like to arrange those things in a gradient form.
I believe this will allow the audience to silently enter a state of choice in their minds, so as to form a transient and real connection with the works.
 
To pick one out of two pearls;
To decide between a plate and a formerly-used pot;
To pour half of the crushed ice cubes into the cup and put another half back to the refrigerator;
To take out a juicer with beautiful lace on a normal but also a special day.

My favorite work is the 52 small flowers made from drain holes, and therefore, I used its photo on the poster.​

Luran’s graduation design for the master’s program consists of two parts: Immersed in Matte and Immersed in Light. She attempted to describe the different looks conveyed by jewelry in the context of art and in the context of commerce by using these two different textures of metal. She has always been fascinated by the pursuit of a subtle texture on the surface of the work. She is meticulous in the observation and selection of materials and has excellent sensitivity and control over the texture.

Out of her fascination with aluminum kitchenware, Luran spent a lot of time collecting old objects of different origins and ages from various sources. By removing greasy dirt and stains from the surface, she retained the physical traces after actual use. At this point, she could observe these large and small pots and pans down to earth, taking a serious look at them to reimagine and construct the possibility to transform every ready-made object into another natural and appropriate thing. Thus, jewelry eventually becomes their new carrier.