Taipei: Stepping into Yen Yu Ting’s studio was like entering her creative whirlwind—paintings, sketches, and ceramics all jostling for attention. Pencil shavings like confetti dusted surfaces, while well-worn books rested in small stacks around the room. Much like her shui-mo (ink and brush) paintings, her space was rich with details, revealing themselves the more I looked.

As I explored further, my attention was drawn to Yen's earliest hand-built ceramics lining the staircase—sculpted in the faces of a dog, a butterfly, and other whimsical figures. I couldn’t help but admire the newer, more refined pieces crafted with 3D moulds, but there was something about her first creations that held a different charm. They spoke of new beginnings—of an accomplished painter learning to shape clay. I was reminded then that every artist, no matter how seasoned, starts as a beginner at some point, and sometimes that beginning takes the form of a dog-shaped ceramic vase or a mischievous decorative creature.

We spent the rest of the afternoon discussing the subtleties of rice paper, the centuries-old art of mounting and preserving shui-mo paintings, and the delicate process of mixing and layering traditional Chinese ink to build pigment.

When asked where she finds inspiration, Yen shared that she rarely sets out to search for it—at least not intentionally. Instead, she lets curiosity guide her, trusting that a connection to her art will reveal itself in time, sometimes years later or perhaps never at all. Her inspiration has come from the most unexpected places: books on East Asian burial rituals and the design of ancient tombs and coffins, as well as the movements in her yoga practice, informing the twists and contortions of the figures she paints. That’s how ceramics found its way into her life too. What started as a one-off workshop at a friend’s studio eventually became an important form of expression. When painting feels drawn out or even painfully gruelling, ceramics offer a refreshing change of pace.

Experimentation keeps Yen engaged and inspired, and there’s a joy she finds in creating something new and different. That was clear as she bounced between sketches for an upcoming footwear collaboration and mosquito-adorned lamps—both promising to be as exciting as they sound. That same energy flowed when she tore through packaging to unveil one of her past paintings, a piece that now inspires a new ceramic sculpture she’s been dreaming up. She has big plans for it, a sculpture of equal size, though the challenge of shaping a large, cylindrical form with clay isn’t lost on her. Though she once felt uncomfortable with the uncertainty in her artistic path, Yen now has a clearer sense of direction, shaped by her ongoing exploration of new mediums and ideas.

As night fell, Yen became absorbed in the canvas, working feverishly to complete a commission piece, her focus a steady hum. Preferring to work in the afternoons and evenings, her hours start just as everyone’s day comes to a close. And so, with a nod to her likely all-nighter ahead, I quietly made my exit—carrying with me a spark of creativity she ignited and a sense of excitement for the incredible work she would soon share.

Artist Instagram. @yenyutingyen