Rare blend of reality and fantasy

[Photo provided to China Daily]

The story is about how a group of blind people try to visualize what an elephant looks like by touching it and how they have arguments about their conclusions as their perceptions differ.

Her portrayal satirizes those who believe that they can see the whole issue in a given situation when they are aware only about a part of the issue.

Yu reinterprets the fable in a modern context, saying: "Everybody believes they are smart enough to get the whole idea. However, we really know very little about what is going on, and it is likely that we often misjudge the situation."

In her work, she also alludes to the global refugee crisis by painting babies placed in basins in grass, and among them is a refugee child lying on his back on a beach. This is a reference to the death of Turkish refugee child Alan Kurdi, who was found on a Turkish beach last September, which brought the Syrian refugee crisis to the attention of the world.

Speaking about her work, Yu, who graduated from CAFA, says: "Living in today's world means we usually know what is happening far away through the media. The events may not seem directly relevant to us but they affect everyone. I hope to be able to portray this."