Unu Sohn RCA

Born to Korean parents in New York, Unu spent her childhood in Hong Kong. She later studied Gender Studies at UCLA before a post-baccalaureate at SAIC.

She chose a table chandelier from the V&A for her project. It was intended to refract light and enhance ambiance. Its beauty would have kept guests at the dinner table, conducive to long meals. Most likely it sat amongst glasses of wine, amidst the type of convoluted discussions that continue late into the night. She felt this hedonistic cozy party environment a stark contrast to the sterile image of the object as displayed in the museum.

For her interpretation, she wanted it to feel alive and emotive. Using wax was appropriate considering glass and wax have similar relationships to heat. The original object has repairs from damage caused by heat from its candles: the very material of glass that gives the object its function and aesthetic hinders it as well since glass is vulnerable to cracking when unevenly heated. Candle wax similarly provides a flame but simultaneously detracts from this function as the fuel is finite. To use is to ruin. The vase form further interrogates function. The temperature inside is higher than its exterior so wax drips inwards and fills the vase throughout the firing. The wax allows it to function as a traditional candle but resists function as a traditional vase.

Far right: Unu Sohn, 8-wick beeswax vase. 36cm x 10cm x 8cm.

Centre: Table Chandelier 1720. V&A Museum. 34cm x 23cm x 30cm