Yiran An

Yiran An was born and raised in Luoyang, Henan Province, China. She graduated with a BA in Arts and Crafts from Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in 2019. After being exposed to many techniques and materials, she chose glass as the object of her further research. She is currently undertaking an MA in Ceramics & Glass at the Royal College of Art. Her work encompasses drawing, ceramics and glass.

She won the Ceramics & Glass Tin project hosted by The Worshipful Company of Tin Plate Workers Alias Wire Workers in 2022.

My practice is a reflection of my state and the environment I am in. In the past two years, I have been exploring questions related to identity in the midst of the dramatic changes arising from a particular time and environment. My work is inspired by one of my dreams where some omnipotent presences watched a box showing everything happening in the world. Narrative has been of particular focus in my practice. I understand the world and myself through storytelling.

I choose to use few colours in my work in order to explore the variations created by the natural movement of the material during the casting process. My practice also includes lampworking which satisfies a need for more predictable and purposeful glassmaking.

Glass is a difficult material to define and predict. I often experience this ambivalence and uncertainty in both work and life.

My work is inspired by a recurring childhood dream in which there are some omnipotent presences watched a box showing everything happening in the world. It was so real it influenced my perception of the world. Reversing the box means we could be the inside or outside, observe or be observed.