XIAO YU CHANG


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CHANNELSThe Shed, New York, US. 2022.
 

CHANNELS

The Shed, New York. 2022.

In 2022, Xiao was commissioned to design costumes and wearables for artist Yo-Yo Lin's multi-sensory performance at the Shed in New York. In the multisensory performance channels, Yo-Yo Lin explores the intricate pathways of the chronically ill body. Lin understands us all to inhabit multiple bodies: ones made up of what we commonly think of as our physical body composed of its parts and organs, and others seemingly invisible, extending beyond the skin, taking the form of energetic fields and kindred relationships.

Channels fully utilized the performance capabilities at the Griffin Theatre, embedding motion capture, real-time graphics rendering, and live sound transmission all at once. Xiao focused on studying movements and gestures of a disabled and chronologically ill torso, and merged their simulation with technology through couture techniques.

Do Cyborgs Dream of Cripped Bodies? Haus der Elektronischen Künste, Basel, Switzerland. 2024.
 

Do Cyborgs Dream of Cripped Bodies?

Haus der Elektronischen Künste, Basel, Switzerland. 2024.

multi-sensory wearable design
 The installation showcased in Tools for Change includes the performance costume from Channels, a short documentary film, an audio-visual interactive system, and projection technology synchronized with Lin’s heartbeat. To authentically recreate the context of the piece, Xiao also handcrafted a life-sized suspended mannequin modeled precisely after Lin’s body and movements, using exact data measurements and custom pattern-making to reconstruct the performance’s dynamic presence.

The concept of Qi that runs throughout the work aligns deeply with the curatorial theme. As Kaganskiy noted, Qi is the vital energy that flows through all beings and objects in Chinese culture, and their work illustrates how technology can act as a medium to transform, harness, and dissolve this energy, ultimately merging it with the human form.
CLOUD VARIATIONS Carnegie Hall, New York, US. 2025.
 

Cloud Variations

Carnegie Hall, New York, US. 2025.

multi-sensory wearable design
 The installation showcased in Tools for Change includes the performance costume from Channels, a short documentary film, an audio-visual interactive system, and projection technology synchronized with Lin’s heartbeat. To authentically recreate the context of the piece, Xiao also handcrafted a life-sized suspended mannequin modeled precisely after Lin’s body and movements, using exact data measurements and custom pattern-making to reconstruct the performance’s dynamic presence.

The concept of Qi that runs throughout the work aligns deeply with the curatorial theme. As Kaganskiy noted, Qi is the vital energy that flows through all beings and objects in Chinese culture, and their work illustrates how technology can act as a medium to transform, harness, and dissolve this energy, ultimately merging it with the human form.