Lillian Shen

Into the Unknown
I believe that everyone carries an inner world—a personal, illogical gallery of
subliminal life, veiled in dreams, shaped by experience, yet composed of more
than memory. Most of the time, this world remains inaccessible, buried beneath
waking consciousness. Perhaps it is what psychologists call the unconscious.

In my conscious mind, I sense the world teetering toward an uncertain future.
Climate change, authoritarianism, and other looming crises threaten to unravel
what once felt stable. My immediate response is to cling to normalcy, to suppress
dread and despair. Yet, these anxieties continue to be processed beneath the
surface, emerging in fleeting ways—through dreams, word associations, and slips
of the tongue.

Lately, my artistic practice begins with collecting objects—not for their material
value, but for their beauty, quirkiness, or quiet insistence. The images in this series
are in-camera compositions of these found objects, arranged as small dioramas
atop my bedroom dresser rather than assembled digitally. This hands-on approach
is integral to my practice, – tactile, real-world constructions giving rise to images
that depart from reality.

While I approach each arrangement with intention, often sketching ideas
beforehand, the images themselves arise from a deeper place. Certain objects
seem to demand inclusion, scratching at the surface of my inner world, insisting on
their role within a scene. The resulting photographs feel dreamlike and irrational—
fragments of the subconscious made visible. I do not doubt that they are oblique
reflections of my suppressed fears, a way for my mind to process what I work so
hard to ignore.

For now, my conscious gaze remains averted from the uncertainty ahead, but
through these images, the unconscious speaks.