Design III, phase one

In the first part of our design course, we were tasked with creating a conceptual model inspired by a female artist. My group, consisting of two other students and myself, was assigned the renowned artist Tracey Emin. We spent the first few weeks brainstorming how we could develop a design inspired by her work, and it quickly became clear that vulnerability, a theme so strongly present in Emin’s art, would be the focus of our concept.


Excited by this, we pressed forward, but soon began to question our approach. Why a cube? Why was the clay positioned on a chair? These questions led us to refine our concept further. We decided to roll out layers of clay and place them between two people not only while hugging, but also during other intimate moments—such as a kiss on the forehead and a hand-in-hand gesture. Our goal was to capture the subtleties of human connection and vulnerability through these gestures.

For the interim jury presentation, we planned to hang the clay pieces at a realistic height, aiming to create a human-like figure made entirely of vulnerability. We named our work Traces of Love, as it embodied the marks left by human affection and tenderness.


The week after, we were ready for the jury. We set up a spotlight and black drapes around our installation, and we were proud of the result. Our work had evolved into something we truly felt captured the essence of vulnerability—something deeply personal, yet universally relatable. The feedback was encouraging, and we are now excited to continue refining and expanding on this idea.


As we explored different ideas, we eventually landed on the idea of depicting vulnerability through the act of a hug. To bring this to life, we decided to place a cube of clay between two people at waist height while they hugged. As they embraced, the clay would deform, creating an impression of the hug. This physical change in the material symbolized the vulnerability that Tracey Emin so often captures in her art.