SARAH XU

SELECT PROJECTS
Porcelain Objects: Silicone Bodies
Red Thread of Telos
100 Days

FILM & THEATER
FABRICATION
MISC.

ABOUT

Rivera Cabezudos
Paper maché, Plaster, Cardboard, Paint
[ August 2025 ]
24 x 22 x 36 inches

Private commission for a large, wearable paper maché head. Modeled after the heads and puppets seen in Puerto Rican and Spanish festivals. 

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William Morris Book Nook 
Illustrator, Laser Cutting
[ February 2023 ]
7 x 11.5 x 7 inches

I was tasked with creating an object for a specific purpose using laser cutters and Illustrator. I had an odd space in my small room that I thought would be perfect as a little book nook. 

I challenged myself to only use scrap/recycled material from the IMA community shop’s junk shelf. To achieve the necessary height with the limited dimensions of the scrap wood and the laser cutter bed, I devised a design composed of three tiers: a bottom drawer, the middle case, and a clerestory top. As a decorative theme, I chose William Morris’ The Strawberry Thief pattern for the drawer front and clerestory cutouts.

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Ode to the Moon
CNC, Fusion 360, Illustrator, Laser Cutting
[ April 2023 ]
10.25 x 5.5 x 0.75 inches


The prompt was to create something with a CNC using Autodesk Fusion 360. Inspired by art nouveau illustrations and the cover of Dear Old Dixie Moon, I created a 3D plaque dedicated to the moon accompanied by a poem by E.E. Cummings, Amores (III).

My goal for this project was to focus on aesthetics, with an emphasis on creating layers of depth. To achieve this, I created decorative shapes as both recesses and protrusions at varying depths. Laser cutting was used to engrave the letters, the face and hair, and the irises.

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