Yo-Yo Lin
2020. Series of four Giclée prints on archival cotton rag. 40.6 x 50.8 cm each
Considering the crip body as a poetic, relational archive, Taiwanese-American interdisciplinary media artist Yo-Yo Lin began tracking different “dimensions” of their illness, as a means of creating a “soft data” (as opposed to “hard data”) archive—highlighting overlooked, daily life realities of living with illness. Lin’s modality for tracking embodied experience is represented in four prints, each a different resilience journal page.
Image Description:
Yo-Yo’s personal Resilience Journal open to the month of March, year 2020. On the left side are a page full of notes numbered 1-31, the days of the month. On the right side is a circular visualization carefully filled in with colored pencil, shades of pink, yellow, orange, salmon, green, red shaded in at various darkness levels, representing the intensity of the experience. The circle is divided up into 7 sections, or dimensions: 1. Felt it, 2. Logistical, 3. Body Image, 4. Social Pressures, 5. Doctor, 6. Future Visions, 7. Past Memories. In this circle visual there appears to be many logistical challenges and social pressures, a result from the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in New York City.
Image Description:
Yo-Yo’s personal Resilience Journal open to the month of April, year 2020. On the left side are a page full of notes numbered 1-30, the days of the month. On the right side is a circular visualization carefully filled in with colored pencil, shades of purple, teal, pink, mustard at various darkness levels, representing the intensity of the experience. The circle is divided up into 7 sections, or dimensions: 1. Felt it, 2. Logistical, 3. Body Image, 4. Social Pressures, 5. Doctor, 6. Future Visions, 7. Past Memories. In this circle visual there appears a lot more blank space, there were less options for care and less logistical events, as shelter-in-place took place. Different intensities of chronic pain are shown in varying shades of purple. The text reveals many days spent cooking, doing virtual engagements, and time spent outdoors in nature.
Image Description:
Yo-Yo’s personal Resilience Journal open to the month of May, year 2020. On the left side are a page full of notes numbered 1-31, the days of the month. On the right side is a circular visualization carefully filled in with colored pencil, shades of lime green, gold, orange, yellow, and grass green at various darkness levels, representing the intensity of the experience. The circle is divided up into 7 sections, or dimensions: 1. Felt it, 2. Logistical, 3. Body Image, 4. Social Pressures, 5. Doctor, 6. Future Visions, 7. Past Memories. In this circle visual the outer ring representing chronic pain seems a lot lighter, intensities staying low. The inner ring indicates many moments where Yo-Yo experienced past traumas. She keeps busy even while maintaining some emotional turmoil- tending to a garden, going to virtual dance classes, applying to opportunities. She indicates in the text more trips outside with her partner’s family, checking in with friends, and moments of rest. Towards the end of the month she notes the murder of George Floyd and rising tensions.
Image Description:
Yo-Yo’s personal Resilience Journal open to the month of June, year 2020. On the left side are a page full of notes numbered 1-31, the days of the month. On the right side is a circular visualization carefully filled in with colored pencil, predominantly shades of blue, pink, and a little bit of yellow at various darkness levels, representing the intensity of the experience. The circle is divided up into 7 sections, or dimensions: 1. Felt it, 2. Logistical, 3. Body Image, 4. Social Pressures, 5. Doctor, 6. Future Visions, 7. Past Memories. In this circle visual in the outer ring, there appears to be many days with low chronic pain. Meanwhile there were many more days with social pressures. The text reveals days helping out friends going to BLM marches, to long talks with family and friends, to attending the first Remote Access Nightlife party, to more time spent outdoors in the sunshine.
Past Installation of Prints from Resilience Journal
2019. Print on moab legion paper, 16 inch x 20 inch.
Written Image Description:
Four framed photographs of journal pages each with a circular chart on the right hand leaf hung on a purple coloured wall.
Written Image Description:
4 photographs of journal pages written by Yo-Yo Lin, hung on a white wall. Each photograph of the journal pages shows a journal entry, alongside a colorful drawing of a circular visualization.
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