Shining DESPAIR
Juan Riusech
Spain

Brooch “Blurred lines of Despair”, 2025
PLA, steel
3D hand printed

« Blurred Lines of Despair » explores the tangible manifestation of emotional unraveling. This sculpture, constructed from tightly wound, dark material, acts as a visual representation of the suffocating grip of despair. The dense, almost impenetrable texture mirrors the feeling of being trapped within one’s own sorrow, a weight that distorts and confines.

Yet, amidst this darkness, vibrant threads of color emerge, piercing the surface like fleeting moments of hope or memory. These threads, in their delicate, almost fragile nature, represent the blurred lines between despair and the lingering remnants of joy. They are the whispers of resilience, the chaotic yet beautiful struggle to find light within the shadows.

The form itself, reminiscent of a fragmented torso or a constricted garment, speaks to the vulnerability and fragility of the human condition. It suggests a sense of being bound, compressed, and distorted by emotional distress, a visual echo of the internal conflict between surrender and the persistent, if faint, impulse to break free.

« Blurred Lines of Despair » is not an attempt to define or resolve the complex nature of sorrow, but rather to give it a tangible form, a space for contemplation. It invites the viewer to confront the uncomfortable realities of emotional pain, while simultaneously acknowledging the enduring presence of hope, however faint, that persists even in the darkest of times and it challenges the viewer to navigate the uncomfortable space between light and darkness, to confront the ever-shifting contours of the human soul, and to acknowledge that despair is not a singular emotion but a complex, fluid experience that cannot be contained or easily understood.. The sculpture serves as a reminder that even in despair, the lines are blurred, and the possibility of transformation remains.

More « Shining DESPAIR »

Shining Despair – Carmen Lopez / Spain

Spinning reflections on the title of the competition.

Shining Despair – Sunyoung Cheong / USA

As an immigrant mother and artist from South Korea, my work reflects the dualities of migration …

Shining Despair – Misha McLean / Scotland

‘Repeat Prescription: 14mg’ embodies the quiet despair felt by those who rely on medication in order to sustain a healthy life.

Shining Despair – Katherine Mc Namara / Ireland

I have been saving the plastic packaging of my cigarette filters for several years.

Shining Despair – Jeannette Knigge / Netherlands

Looking at the world from behind your curtains, untouchable yet vulnerable.

Shining Despair – Arisa Inoue / Japan

It’s not uncommon for darkness to cast a shadow over the human heart.

Shining Despair – Susan Buchanan / Australia

The Earth flexes its muscle, the applied concrete ‘urban skin’ breaks open and a microcosm of life is created in the cracks in the pavement.

Shining Despair – Eiko Nakahara / Japan

In the current state of the world, people hate each other and there are countries full of hatred.

Shining Despair – Henrike Altes – Germany

Out of the feeling of longing for warmth and the close relationship to a beloved person …

Shining Despair – Youjin Um / South Korea

My No. 1 treasure is my happy childhood memory.