李沁颐
Qinyi Li Artist Statement
Qinyi Li is a Chinese artist based in Glasgow and Beijing, whose practice unfolds at the intersection of traditional Chinese philosophy and the Western-centric global art discourse. Her work responds to the rupture of cultural lineage in contemporary contexts—not as a binary conflict, but as a generative space of contradiction and transformation; it also reflects on how re-engaging with nature through embodied perception can regenerate our relational consciousness within a world shaped by technological spectacle.
Drawing from the I Ching, Daoism, Shanshui, and Chan Buddhist thought, Qinyi develops a rhizomatic generative system,—A process-driven approach rooted in the Taoist principle of non-coercive action (无为) nature view. A non-linear, interconnected system where difference exists without opposition, rigid binaries, or hierarchies— instead embracing a dynamic balance in which multiple elements coexist, connect, and interact. This ecosystem/generative logic of relationships generates meaning through tension and flow, echoing her relational worldview of 和而不同 (harmony in diversity). Through her poetic reinterpretation and an intuitive, perceptual mode of making, she deconstructs symbolic meanings, dissolves functional boundaries, and evokes raw perception and strangeness through materiality and the tensions between objects, perception, and dynamic form. The Chinese culture, therefore, exists not through explicit symbolic forms, but is embodied in a generative logic.
Rather than imposing fixed meanings, her work opens an ambiguous “realm of blankness,” inviting viewers into states of true perception—where shedding the compass of cognition allows raw sensation, personal feelings, and memory to become the core guides. Here, sensation, memory, and inner resonance serve as pathways toward a wider spiritual cosmos.