Your work is incredibly imaginative. Tell us a bit about it.

I love observing people, so that’s why most of my work centers around a specific character or person. I like juxtapositioning different types of people with different types of personalities in my pieces.

My illustrations tell incomplete stories about the characters, and expose whether they are naive, sincere, outspoken, obstinate, quirky, freaky, etc. I’m really just trying to convey the human condition.

I use lines, color blocks, odd accessories, and special lighting and shadowing techniques to achieve the emotions and setting I want. I’m trying to suspend all thinking and all memories from the the viewer, and just present the characters and atmosphere as pure as possible.

I use flamboyant colors to keep a safe distance from reality. Using such colors also helps me present the characters as more pure.

Three words to describe your artistic style?

Absurd, realistic, and contradictory.

How has your creative style evolved from your earliest work to now?

Early on, I wasn’t very experimental. I mostly just did simple hand drawings with the objective of making the pieces “look good.” My work at that time really didn’t have many ideas / concepts or thinking behind it. But, the more I drew, the more complicated my work became. Now, I put a lot of thought into my art; I use it as a channel to express certain emotions, human characteristics, personalities, settings, etc.

What is unique about you and your work?

I’ve never tried to pursue any certain style. I just follow my own interests and aesthetics to construct and design my own pieces. At this point though, of course, my work and style have yet to fully mature. With my art, I don’t really ever want to diverge from the general topic of “life” and “experience.” In fact, some of the scenes in my work are direct reflections of my life experience. I prefer to draw inspiration from authentic feelings and experiences in my life.

Who do you want your work to appeal to?

I’ve never thought of my work appealing to anyone. But, if I’d like it to appeal to anyone, then it would be my father. My father is a great artist.

To me, my art is divided into two categories – 1) solely for myself and based 100% on my own style and themes; and 2) for commercial purposes. With the latter, I have to consider the different tastes and sentiments of my audience.

What’s your favorite color?

I don’t really have a favorite color. But I certainly wear a lot of black.

Different colors match different emotions, so, I don’t really think about which are my favorites. I just use the ones I think express what I want to express. Every artist prefers certain types of color palettes, etc. For me, I like vintage and retro colors.

What kind of music do you like?

Folk. I really like Zhang Xuan, and so many more too, but most are in the folk genre, and to be honest, I don’t really remember their names.

What are your happiest moments / biggest accomplishments as an artist? What’s your biggest fears about being an artist?

My happiest moments are when people who don’t need to compliment my work go out of their way to do so.

My scariest moments come when I’m looking in the mirror with a blank mind. That’s pretty terrifying for me.

We follow a lot of young and emerging artists in China, and for whatever reason, their work (for the most part) is gender-obvious. However, your work is not very feminine at all.

Hahaha. Looking at an artists’ work is like looking at the artist.

My work probably doesn’t appear very feminine because my personality is not very feminine. I’ve only recently started to actually act like a girl…hahaha.

I like art to be gender neutral. I love the work of Maki Kahori. Her black flowers are exquisitely detailed and delineated, both feminine and masculine.

You once updated your Neocha profile with: “I wish I was able to see what you see.”

This was for my dad. I want to merge art into my life the way he does and see the world the way he sees it.

What did you want to be when you were 10 years old?

Wow, that was a long time ago. Let me rewind the tape.

To be honest, I can’t remember clearly, but probably nothing. It wasn’t until I was well into middle school that I started to think about these things. My dream now is to live my own life, paint what I want, have a small house of my own, and travel around the world.

Many emerging creatives in China lack a sense of belonging and security. They create exceptional work, but often don’t know what they want to achieve or pursue with their talents. Do you struggle with this? What are your long-term goals and objectives for your work?

Yeah, I’ve struggled with this before because in this day and age, not all talented artists and their work are fully recognized by mainstream culture. Artists always struggle with how to manage / balance the art side of their work and the commercial side of their work. There was a time when I used to disdain all things related to “commercial art.” But now I know how to separate my personal art from my commercial art, which helps me maintain my integrity as a creative, while also having food to eat. It’s all about striking the right balance. Of course though, I hope I can have more time to work on and perfect my personal art.

As a student at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Art, what do you think about the standard of art education in China? Is it up-to-snuff or could it be improved? If the latter, how so? Compared to independent / self-taught artists, what benefits / deficits do Chinese art students have?

Of course, improvements need to be made. It seems there are more and more art students every year in China, but not many of them are committed to studying art so as to enter the art field in China. To me, art education is not about studying art, it’s about feeling it. Some students get lost in learning “techniques,” which of course are important, especially for finding a job, but cultivating an understanding of art and further developing one’s art aesthetics is the top priority.

Among my friends, there aren’t any self-taught or completely independent artists, so I can’t really make any comparisons between self-taught / independent artists and “art students.” In my eyes, art is a combination of sense, sensibilities, aptitude, and technique. A real artist can’t exist without any of these. If you have these, regardless of where you got them (in school or on your own), then you can be a fantastic artist and create your own world.

What makes you angry? What makes you laugh?

I can get pretty pissed off when arguing with my boyfriend.

I love surprises, they make me happy.

What are your impressions of the local creative community in Guangzhou?

It’s very active. There are a lot of people doing original work, whether it be visual arts, music, etc. But honestly, I’m not very familiar with these artists personally. I have friends doing art, but they are mostly weighed down and restricted artistically by the pressures of making a living. People who do original work and are not so restricted financially are generally very active.

Cantonese culture is a very special. In Beijing or other areas of Northern China, the environment is often very political, but here in Guangdong, everything is quite casual and lively. It’s funny to see how my classmates work is often determined by where they are from. Pieces from students from Northern China are often very deep and artistic, and in some ways experimental, while work from students from Southern China is light-hearted and more “storytelling” like. I’ve been living here so long that my characters and the colors I use already seem very Cantonese. But really, since I’m not from the south, I can’t dig very deeply into Cantonese culture.

Where are the best places in Guangzhou to see work from emerging Chinese creatives like yourself?

Hahaha, I’m not sure… I’m quite “otaku” (meaning those that like to stay at home and be lazy). But I know some decent bars and galleries. Loft 345 Art Space is pretty cool.

How are young, emerging artists, designers, creatives changing modern Chinese culture and society?

I think young, emerging artists, designers, and creatives in China are full of vigor and extremely enthusiastic. They are working hard to find a balance between personal art and commercial art, while pushing more and more people to accept and “feel” art, and integrate it into their everyday lives.

Right now, this group of people, who are so full of positive energy, are contained and perhaps only have influence on a small scale. They need some good opportunities and ways to reach a larger audience. This will give them more influence in modern Chinese culture.

How would you describe the creative community in China to a foreigner?

It’s probably something totally different from the creative community they’re used to. Because China has its own unique historical and cultural traditions and these are by no means superficial. We are these traditions, they are our base. The creativity community in China is rooted in this culture.

If there was anything you could change about the creative community in China, what would it be?

I wish there was less copying. China should be creating more of it’s own original stuff. Imitating and taking inspiration from others is an inevitable part of an artist’s learning process, but if you want to make out something unique that shows your individual distinctiveness, there is no shortcut – you have to work your ass off.

If in 100 years someone wrote a biography about you, what would the title be?

Oh come on, I doubt the Earth will still be here in 100 years.

Who should we interview next?

Sop2099. He’s an amazing illustrator.