As we used to float

Lu Cheng's creative practice emerges from the interplay between deliberate craftsmanship and organic evolution. Inspired by natural phenomena such as the symbiotic bonds of microorganisms, the metamorphoses of cellular membranes, or the intricate networks of fungal growth, she develops a distinctive formal language that continues to evolve. In her installations, constructed and organic elements merge into bioamorphic systems, their porous structures dissolving the boundaries between architectural form and natural growth. Working in a concentrated, time-intensive manner, Cheng shapes each ceramic element by hand, embracing repetition as a pathway to difference and change. A central form - derived from the archaic motif of the thorn - undergoes constant transformation. This metamorphosis unfolds through playful experimentation and precise variation, allowing each piece to unfold in unexpected ways. The firing process adds another layer of transformation: varying temperatures create subtle color gradations while introducing elements of chance into the final form. The sculpture Shell (2025), an assemblage of ceramics, steel, and mesh, inhabits the threshold between protection and exposure. Like a second skin or protective membrane, it shifts between armored enclosure and permeable boundary, suggesting spaces of transition. Its tentacle-like extensions reach toward the floor installation Expansion (2025), which spreads through the space as a sinuous, winding carpet made up of countless ceramic elements. Object and environment form an interdependent whole, each continuously shaping the other. Fulcrum (2025) translates this spatial dynamic into physical presence. A ceramic body weighing fifty kilograms, traversed by tubular structures and covered in a spiny, thorny skin, balances on a spine-like steel framework. Caught in a moment of potential movement, the elastic inner metal structure and ceramic mass maintain a delicate equilibrium. This suspended state exemplifies the subtle tensions running through Lu Cheng's work - heaviness and lightness, solidity and fluidity, stillness and motion - states existing in dynamic interplay rather than opposition. Like a living milieu, as we used to float creates a space of collective suspension. Cheng shapes archaic forms into organic membranes, revealing the delicate tension between shelter and openness. The works appear as moments captured within an ongoing process of growth, as if held in a state of perpetual transformation that extends into the viewer's experience.