Fluid visions: Exploring lava, femininity, and form with Yizhen Li

In this interview, new media artist Yizhen Li shares the creative process behind Lava’s Lament, an immersive installation exhibited at Gray Area in San Francisco in early 2024 as part of Gray Area’s Cultural Incubator. Yizhen’s work blends soft materials, light, and projections to create a space that explores themes of femininity, memory, and the natural cycles that connect us to the environment.

Originally from Sichuan, China, Yizhen draws from traditional cultural elements and combines them with contemporary digital practices to create dynamic, multisensory experiences. Lava’s Lament reflects this approach, using a cone-shaped fabric structure as a vessel for projection and soundscapes inspired by volcanic imagery.

Listen to this episode to learn about:

• How Yizhen uses an iterative process to test and refine materials for this immersive installations.

• The challenges of blending digital projections with physical elements to evoke fluidity and wholeness.

• Yizhen’s insights into creating art that connects natural themes with personal and cultural narratives.

Subscribe using your favourite podcast player or RSS

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts   |  Spotify   |  Amazon Music  |   Android   |   Instagram   |   RSS

Highlights

• (00:05:00) Exploring femininity and nature through immersive art installations

• (00:03:19) Exploring volcanic imagery through ecofeminism and ancient philosophy
• (00:06:07) Creating immersive volcanic art with prototyping and visuals
• (00:10:29) Transforming art from materiality to immersive fluidity
• (00:14:20) Challenges in creating dynamic fabric structures for projections
• (00:16:11) Exploring materiality and living systems in media art
• (00:18:45) Embracing flexibility and adaptation in audiovisual work

 

About Yizhen Li

Yizhen Li is a new media artist and designer whose work encompasses audio-visual installations, generative art, and experience design. Her practice is distinguished by the innovative use of soft materials, light, and projections, blending traditional cultural elements with cutting-edge digital techniques to create immersive, fluid experiences.

Originally from Sichuan, China, Yizhen integrates materials like rice paper and textiles with ephemeral light to explore themes of femininity, memory, and environmental cycles. With a background in studio arts, stage design, and human interaction design, her dynamic approach pushes the boundaries of immersive media, continuously evolving to connect audiences with deeper cultural and natural narratives.

Key Takeaways from this interview with Yizhen Li

Lava’s Lament is an immersive installation exhibited at Gray Area in San Francisco, featuring a cone-shaped fabric structure that symbolises a volcano. Using soft materials, projections, and a layered six-minute soundscape, the piece explores themes of femininity, memory, and the natural cycles connecting humans and the environment. 

Prototyping

Yizhen experimented extensively with different fabrics to ensure they aligned with her vision. She tested textures, thicknesses, and reflectiveness to create surfaces that carried projections effectively while maintaining a sense of softness and fluidity.

“I tested fabrics with different textures and thicknesses to ensure the projections were clear, but still felt soft and inviting to the audience.”

Balancing digital and physical

The cone-shaped structure in Lava’s Lament served both as a vessel for projections and as a symbolic volcano. Yizhen carefully balanced aesthetics, technical functionality, and conceptual themes to make the space immersive and interactive.

“The cone-shaped fabric structure symbolised a volcano and determined how the audience would interact with and experience the work.”

Layering visuals with sound

The soundscape in Lava’s Lament was created in collaboration with the experimental duo Southeast of Rain. Yizhen edited the original composition to align with the visuals, creating an emotional journey that begins calmly, builds to a climax, and returns to tranquillity.

“The sound shifts between calm and intensity, mirroring the flow of the visuals and themes of the piece.”

Exploring fluidity and femininity

Inspired by eco-feminism and ancient Chinese philosophy, Yizhen used the volcano as a metaphorical vessel. The work focused on interconnectedness, continuity, and fluidity rather than literal depictions of volcanic activity.

“I wanted to explore cycles of nature and femininity, presenting them as interconnected parts of a self-generating process.”

Overcoming challenges with materiality

Choosing and adapting the right materials was one of Yizhen’s biggest challenges. She spent time sourcing fabrics, testing how they interacted with projections, and ensuring the structure felt both dynamic and accessible.

“I treated material testing like coding—adjusting and refining until everything worked together harmoniously.”

Advice

Yizhen encourages flexibility during the creative process, allowing concepts to evolve naturally. She highlighted the importance of experimentation and adapting ideas as the work develops.

“Don’t stress over your original idea—it will evolve throughout the process. Be open to change and let the work guide you.”

Read Robin’s reflection on this conversation - Rethinking media art processes: from digital tools to physical prototyping

Links from the podcast  

• Follow Yizhen Li on Instagram
• Explore Gray Area
• Learn more about the  Gray Area Cultural Incubator
• Visit Southeast of Rain’s website

Edited transcript of this interview with Yizhen Li

Creating Lava’s Lament: how volcano imagery shaped an immersive installation

Robin Petterd: What’s it like to experience Lava’s Lament? Experiencing lava?

Yizhen Li: It’s like stepping into a world where the raw power of nature meets visualised fluidity. Lava’s Lament is an audiovisual installation that expresses volcanic eruption through the lens of femininity. I use soft materials, light, and projections. The project began after I visited the Big Island in Hawaii. Later, I developed it during a six-month residency at the Gray Area Cultural Incubator at Gray Area in San Francisco.

Exploring eco-feminism and Chinese philosophy in media art

Robin Petterd: Was that visit to the volcano the starting point for the piece? Or were there other ideas feeding into it?

Yizhen Li: Yes, the volcano was definitely a starting point. The imagery affected me deeply. But after doing more research—into volcanic and natural activity—I arrived at the concept of oneness and fluidity. That was influenced by eco-feminism and by reading the I Ching, the ancient Chinese divination book. In that philosophy, the cosmos is seen as a great flow—everything is part of one organic whole, interacting in a self-generating process. The volcano became a metaphor or vessel through which I could explore cycles of nature and femininity. The goal wasn’t to imitate an eruption but to visualise continuity, wholeness, and dynamism.

Selecting soft materials for projection: balancing clarity and symbolism

Robin Petterd: Materially, what was your biggest challenge?

Yizhen Li: Finding fabric that could receive projections clearly while retaining softness. Texture, thickness, reflectiveness—all were tested. I bought sample swatches and experimented in the dark studio to align visuals and material softness. It took time, but it was essential in making the installation feel inviting and dynamic.

Robin Petterd: Did you consider collaborating with fabric experts?

Yizhen Li: I really felt the need to shape the materials myself. Hands-on testing was critical in achieving the right balance.

Tools for creating audiovisual installations: TouchDesigner and After Effects

Robin Petterd: Tell me about your process for making the work. How did it start?

Yizhen Li: It was multi-layered: conceptual exploration, technical development, and artistic experimentation. I began with research into volcano symbolism—culturally, environmentally, and in feminist contexts. In Hawaiian mythology, volcanoes are often personified as female deities. I prototyped various options: one idea was a fabric waterfall mounted against a wall, where audiences viewed it from the outside.

Yizhen Li: Eventually, I chose a cone-shaped fabric structure—a volcano that the audience could step inside. That form became the vessel for projection and sound. I collaborated with Southeast of Rain, an experimental music duo, and edited their composition to align with the visuals.

Yizhen Li: For visuals, I used TouchDesigner and Adobe After Effects, layering found footage of natural elements like water bubbles, and even flowing text to mimic molten lava.

Inside the Gray Area Cultural Incubator: process, critique, and evolution

Robin Petterd: How did the incubator programme at Gray Area influence that process?

Yizhen Li: The incubator was really supportive. We had monthly critique sessions, which helped me refine my ideas. The structure was clear: concept development in the first two months, then production, then final adjustments. Sometimes I’d have two competing directions for the work, and presenting both helped me get feedback. My peers and the program team gave me references, workspace suggestions, and helped me see my work from new angles.

Yizhen Li: The biggest change was shifting from a focus on recycled materials and materiality to a focus on the concept of fluidity. I wanted the audience to be inside the piece, embraced by it—not just observing it from a distance.

Robin Petterd: Your material working is exciting. What advice do you have for media installation artists?

Yizhen Li: For audiovisual or new media art, I think the elements really need to work harmoniously. It’s not about everything matching perfectly, but about coherence—how the concept is expressed through sound and visuals together. My advice? Don’t get too attached to your original idea. Let the work evolve. It’s okay if the final piece looks nothing like what you first imagined. Be flexible, experiment, iterate.