Inoperable Instrument — Youyi Echo Yan

Inoperable Instrument
2022
Glass, oil on canvas, metal, synthetic fur, synthetic moss, stained wood, film, acrylic sheets
Dimensions variable

Inoperable Instrument is an installation that explores the distortion of image and self, building upon my 2021 performance piece, Instrument.
Using glass and plastic to manipulate the film photography taken from the earlier work and the painting made from it, the installation fragments images of my own body into abstract, elusive visuals. Inspired by the dual nature of ultrasound images—as both intimate and impersonal—the work examines the "medical gaze" and its objectification of life. Through distortion, the piece reflects on identity's fragility in a world where technology reshapes how we perceive the body, self, and material existence.

Instrument, 2021