Medium: Mixed media installation
Format: Spatial installation with 3D-printed sculpture, crystal wall, hollow clock, light, projection, aluminum profiles, and hand-built red wooden chair.
Dimensions: Physical structure approx. 300 × 100 × 240 cm
TOOLS
Description
Before the Shape Was Mine is built on a structure that persists long before it can be named. Educational systems, family authority, and conditional love shape character and behavior before a person develops the capacity to question, refuse, or leave.
At the center of the installation is What Was Made of Me, an unaltered 1:1 self-portrait. It is the result. Before the Shape Was Mine is about how that result was made.
A black frame marks the structure’s limits. Suspended from it is a field of crystals that catches and fragments light across the space. That brilliance is not freedom. It is the trace left when light is cut by the structure. Above the seated figure, a red clock reads as both a face and a mechanism, visually merging with the body into a single silhouette. A red chair holds the body in a position it was never asked to choose.
During exhibition hours, the installation is manually activated. A flashlight mounted onto the clock rotates across the crystals, splitting light into moving fragments that travel over the walls, floor, ceiling, and body. Outside of this active state, the light is removed, the clock remains still, and the structure is left exposed. The projection continues to recede into space, holding the work between presence and aftermath.
The clock and the endlessly receding projection point to the same condition: the past has not disappeared, and the present is still inside it. Seeing the structure is not the same as leaving it. The chair is still red. The body is still sitting there.
After the initial concept and spatial structure were outlined, a rough overall model of the installation was built in C4D to establish the composition and proportions of the piece.
I built the Sedia 1 Chair and applied color finishing to complete the piece.
The clock structure was inspired by Hollow Clock by shiura.
The visual effect of the floating hands was particularly compelling, but adapting the mechanism to the required installation scale became a key challenge.
To achieve a more accurate mechanical structure, I used Fusion 360 to design and build the internal mechanism of the clock.
The system uses a 12V DC geared motor (Greartisan 60RPM).
A 12V power supply drives the motor through a motor driver, while an LM2596 DC-DC buck converter steps down the voltage to power the Arduino Nano.
A custom base was designed to mount all electronic components as modular units for easier assembly and maintenance.
The minute hand needed to emit light.
The original plan was to use a white laser module, but its higher power requirements complicated the power system.
Instead, a compact focusing flashlight and a red laser pen was used and integrated into a custom housing mounted behind the minute hand.
Magnets were embedded in the casing to allow easy replacement.
The first prototype revealed several issues.
The clearance between the gear ring and the frame was too small, creating excessive friction that prevented the motor from operating properly.
Additional structural adjustments were required to improve the mechanical performance.
I used UV resin to connect all crystal elements with fishing line, forming the crystal wall structure.
After multiple rounds of testing and the design of several supporting components, the clock and the lighting system were able to operate properly.
I then assembled the full installation in the studio, testing the aluminum profile structure and its load-bearing capacity to ensure it could support all elements securely.
As the final step of the project, I developed the poster design.
Instead of using a conventional printed format, I chose to produce the poster through 3D printing.
I designed the typography, arranged all visual elements in C4D, and carried out multiple rounds of testing to reach the final result.
I made a series of 3D-printed badges with embedded NFC chips for visitors to take.
The working process was documented through time-lapse recording.
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