Portfolio for RISD MArch

Righteousness 公义

Portfolio by Jiayi Liu

They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer."

Genesis 37:19

This Portfolio is dedicated to my Grandma An Unselfish Woman

She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her

Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor

Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace

She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold her fast are called blessed

Proverbs 3:15-18

1. Southern Justice

2. Self - Order

3. Action Liberty

4. Gaoui Oven

5. Other Works

Southern Justice

A community of migrant workers

Site: Guangdong, China

Project: 2022.03 - 2022.10

Installation: 2023.03 - 2023.06 (Display)

Individual academic work

Since China announced its reform and opening up to a market economy in 78, urbanization and economic growth have been rapid. Especially in South China, the involvement of the neoliberal world economy has profoundly shaped the urban geography. Several major cities in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region, including Shenzhen and Dongguan, have borne the brunt of this growth due to their geographic proximity to Hong Kong, a financial center supported by global capitalism. Particularly after Hong Kong's handover in 1997, geographer George C.S. Lin and others began to focus on the transfer of Hong Kong's manufacturing facilities to PRD cities under the governmentbacked "store front, factory back" economic strategy. Dongguan, in particular, has been undergoing export-oriented industrialization and spatial transformation to support Hong Kong's and Shenzhen's trade, confirming Koolhaas's prediction in 1996 that PRD cities would become "cities of exacerbated difference". Dongguan, as the landing point for millions of migrant workers in China, has an unflattering public image as the "factory of the world" as the price behind its economic aura. Statistics from recent years show that Dongguan's population is generally on the rise, while migrant workers have steadily accounted for about 80% of the total resident population. In order to manage this migrant population, the government and factories impose strict controls that widely exclude them from the social resources of the settled city

For the needy shall not always be forgotten, and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever Psalms 9:18

Self - Order

A vanguard policy of discipline

Site: Nevada, United States

Project: 2023.03 - 2023.06

Festvial: 2023.09 (Cancelled)

Individual academic work

In 1986, Larry Harvey, Jenny Jims and some friends set fire to a 2.7m tall wooden man and a wooden dog at Baker Beach in San Francisco. According to Larry Harvey, the group was just trying to be "radical" by burning objects. Later, feeling good, they decided to repeat the event every year until 1990, when the number of spectators rose to 800 and the local police had to be evicted. But their supporters didn't stop there, and they set up a better organisation and moved their "operation" to the nearby Black Rock Desert. Later, this new activity, which was only spread by word of mouth, attracted more and more people, and the homemade wooden sculptures they brought to burn were all cooler than ever. Imagination, freedom, rebellion and other terms that used to belong to the hippies of the 60s were transferred to this activity without any reservation. Hence the new name, Burning Man Festival, and the fun campsites and activities, the agreed-upon rules and regulations, and the yearly theme of the installations. The first thing you have to do is forget who you are in the real world - at Burning Man everyone is called a Burner, first timers are called Virgins, order keepers are called Rangers, non-vegans are called Bacon, and the entire Black Rock Desert is called Playa. ...... Having learnt the "language" of the world, it's easy to mingle with other Burners. Burning Man emphasises the spirit of unconditional tolerance, so fancy dress and nudity are equally welcome here, with no coloured glasses, just individual people letting themselves go

For the upright will inhabit the land, and those with integrity will remain in it

Proverbs 2:21

Action Liberty

A pooled agricultural production community

Site: Meghalaya, India

Project: 2023.07 - 2023.10

Rain season: 2023.05 - 2023.09

Individual academic work

The uniquely popular living root bridges in Meghalaya are made of tangles of massively thick roots. They can hold several people at a time and have been classified as doubledecker and single-decker root bridges. The Khasi people are experts in growing these bridges, which are over a hundred feet long and take about 10 to 15 years to become fully functional.The bridges are alive and growing, capable of carrying strong weights of up to 50 people at a time. There is no knowledge about when and how the tradition of growing living root bridges began. Lieutenant Henry Yule's written mention of the bridges in Sohra, Cherrapunji in the Asiatic Society of Bengal journal in 1944, is perhaps the earliest record.It is fascinating how a living root bridge is made. The pliable roots of the Ficus elastic tree are pulled and guided across a stream or river and then left to strengthen and grow so that they can hold the weight of a human being. It is said that even elephants are able to cross over by using these bridges! There are various ways that a root bridge can be made: one is where the locals pull and manipulate young roots to grow and strengthen without any scaffolding. The second is when the roots are pulled over bamboo or wood scaffolding and allowed to grow. The third method is when the roots are manipulated and allowed to grow through hollowed out areca nut trees that are planted over rivers or streams. Last, but not least, is when the roots are manipulated over already existing bridges, which could also be steel structures

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong 1 Corinthians 16:13

There are many corridor-like spaces in the building which take on the task of indicating flows and stops

Corridors

Production space view

The production space can take care of most of the production work and distribution in the region

Gaoui Oven

A clay production improvement device

Site: Gaoui, Chad

Project: 2023.10 - 2023.12

Sao culture: 1th BC - 16th

Individual academic work

The Gaoui village is a fantastic window into the everyday life of a common rural community in the middle of the inhospitable Sahel semi-desert. The village is famous for its pottery – in fact, it is the major source of revenue. Practically every woman in the village is busy with making giant pots – preparing the mud-based clay by mixing the surrounding dirt and water and adding some binding plant material, shaping the pots, drying them out, and then cooking them by burning cow dung, and finally painting and decorating. As you walk around he village – there are pots in various stages of completion lying everywhere. It takes about a day to make one and it sells for $4 if sold locally, or $10 of you can get to to Ndjamena. Besides pots, Gaoui also specializes in dry cow dung sales – giant donkey-pulled carts drag this stuff for sale. Cow and other dung is the major and often only source of fuel here – there are few trees and no gas or electricity. So I guess you can describe the Gaoui economy as well-diversified energy and valueadded manufacturing – from dry cow dung exports to bulk mud claypots production. The traditional mudbrick house and museum have some relics found here – sultan’s clothes, some photos, old pottery. It’s kind of hard to say what’s authentic here and what’s just made for museum display but it’s quite interesting overall. The house is a two story construction with small holes for windows thus keeping it cool inside and the walls are full of traditional colorful paintings

He took our illnesses and bore our diseases

Matthew 8:17