THE BLUE BELOW STILL BREATHES

Author

Yiyi WangFollow

Date of Award

Spring 5-31-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

Printmaking

First Advisor

Juana Estrada Hernandez

Second Advisor

Andrew Raftery

Third Advisor

Daniel Heyman

Abstract

The Blue Below Still Breathes explores disappearance transformation rather than loss—a shift in visibility that reveals the pressures, absences, and structures shaping perception. Across interactive installations and print works, I examine how power operates through omission, fragility, and formal control. At the heart of this practice is printmaking, reimagined as a responsive, impermanent medium that challenges its historical association with fixedness.

The thesis installation features a 5x5 grid of thermochromic screenprints of a concrete wall, where viewer proximity activates a randomized sequence of heating panels. As heat raises the temperature of the surface, a field of blue gradually emerges, breaking through the illusion of solid concrete. When the panels cool, the blue fades, and the concrete pattern gradually reappears, restoring the original surface. This cyclical fading and reappearance of the image transforms the viewer from passive observer to an active participant in the work. By making the image appear and disappear, the installation invites the viewer to consider how visibility can shift under changing conditions, emphasizing the instability of what seems fixed.

Recommended Citation

Wang, Yiyi, "THE BLUE BELOW STILL BREATHES" (2025). Masters Theses. 1495.
https://digitalcommons.risd.edu/masterstheses/1495

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.