Liyun Yu - US/China
Liyun Yu
Designer biography:
Liyun Yu is a China-born jewelry designer whose practice centers on the expression of personal emotions, particularly within family relationships and intimacy. She holds a BA in Jewellery Design from Central Saint Martins and is currently pursuing an MFA in Metal and Jewelry Design at Rochester Institute of Technology. Her work often combines traditional and non-traditional materials to translate subtle psychological tensions into tactile forms. Her work has been selected for SNAG’s Juried Student Exhibition 2026, she is a winner of the Rejewelry Competition 2025, and was nominated “One to Watch” by Bright Young Gems in 2022.
Collection concept
My collection is rooted in personal experience. My grandmother expresses love through strong control, care that often leaves me uneasy. The discomfort is not overwhelming, but subtle and persistent, like a hidden prick: a needle quietly left on my clothing, wounding me by accident. This led me to use sewing needles as my primary material. I construct them into nest-like forms, resembling the home she built for me—well-intentioned, yet suffocating. These nests are built gradually over time, enclosing me little by little. Inside the nest, a pearl represents myself: contained, marked by small but undeniable wounds that accumulate over time.
