Forced Separation

 Allegorical cacti float above a grid in a copper plate etching by Zhang Ruyi.

Throughout her practice, Ruyi uses cacti to represent herself. The ‘forced separation’ of organic forms and rigid systems is a consistent theme in her work, and she keeps a daily log of the plants she cultivates by sketching them onto graph paper.

Forced Separation transforms one of her early drawings into a copper plate etching for the first time. This particular type of etching was Ruyi’s medium of choice as a student. A layered orange grid contains a row of cacti, rendered in a “state of dying” and reimagined to fit within its constraints.

“The title is a relatively objective description. It represents an expression of performance and an individual's blurred emotions within a densely structured urban environment.”