Meet Yanqi Magicfeifei Wang

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Yanqi Magicfeifei Wang a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Yanqi magicfeifei, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

My optimism comes from the art I make and the way I approach it—direct, blunt, sarcastic, and unafraid to challenge norms or provoke uncomfortable reactions. My work, especially in photography and sculpture, is like stand-up comedy in that it thrives on irony and making fun of mistakes, poking at behavior with a sense of humor that is both unapologetically blunt and deliberately embarrassing. I like to see people react with discomfort because that means I’ve hit on something real. I’m stubborn, almost like an ox, with a spiky, persistent nature that keeps me genuinely committed to my art, even though I don’t take it too seriously. In fact, not taking art too seriously is how I take it seriously, as if the more humor I bring in, the more honest I can be. When critics dismiss my work as “dumb,” “silly,” or “stupid,” it only encourages me to do more, fueling my optimism and reminding me that I’m on a unique path that’s mine alone.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

i will talk about my art work.
I was born in a Chinese family, or so I thought until one day I opened the locked drawer in my parents’ bedroom. Throughout my childhood, my mother and father embraced the role of traditional parents. At least this was the impression imprinted in my psyche when I left for boarding school in Canada at fifteen. After returning from my first year at university abroad, I found a drawer filled with sex toys on the side of their bed: Leather whips, handcuffs, role-play costumes, provided a glimpse into a hidden part of my parent’s persona I had never seen. I discovered a hidden world within my world, and the ensuing confusion was disorienting. The stabilizing values my parents established and instilled throughout my childhood were brought into question. My experiences as a woman, living outside my culture as an outsider, and my identity as a rebel in relationship to my parent’s traditional values were also in question after this discovery. Photographing the outward tear in my reality allowed me to gain new insight, and slowly recognize myself through my parents’ actions.

I wish to open more drawers with my photographs. To continue the journey to discover hidden facets within my existence that connect me as an individual to my family and my larger understanding of the culture I live within. My parents were secretive because they had to be. In China, sexual liberation is repressed and still considered taboo. My parents shared that they could not find like-minded individuals to share their desires and play, and had to rely on each other as there was no alternative to turn to for support. They only had each other.

After long and sincere conversations with my parents, I realized they were “pioneers” of their generation. They had connected with western ideas regarding sexual desire and advanced a practice that existed outside of culture, and were forced to keep their practice, belief, and values hidden, in order to be accepted by the community. Once I began to discuss with my parents the content of the drawer, I began to realize that my parents sent me to be educated outside of China, to allow me through education, freedom not permitted through traditional education in my culture. They desired an easier life for me. What they practiced externally, was in contradiction to their private internal beliefs. They were forced to struggle with a marginalized existence that continues to remain outside the norm of their community. As a photographer, I want to shine a light on those hidden struggles and force my culture to look beyond the fear of desire and resist the sexual repression my parents have encountered throughout their life.

The series, “Once I opened my Dad’s Drawer”, focuses on the relationship between people, kinship, gender, and generational differences in east Asia. In order to accomplish this, I take my past experiences and recreate them for the camera. I explore the intergenerational conflict between myself, my parents, and their parents, and use photography to explore the interconnectivity between our lives to navigate the tangle of emotional complexity between three generations. The series emphasizes the contrast between traditional attire and cosplay to visualize the awkwardness my parents must feel about their hidden desire in relation to the outward appearance they maintain. Furthermore, the disjunctive elements have a playful vibe and reveal my parents’ secret personalities, and depict the joy associated with the release of repression.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

As a young artist deeply engaged in photographic exploration, I currently serve as a teaching assistant for university photography courses. My advice to students is to keep asking questions about their work, to listen and learn more than they speak. Attend exhibitions, read books, and approach art with sincerity. It is ok not to know what you are doing with your art, patience is most important. There will be a lot of voices around you throughout your art practice, be decisive on what you believe.

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

i think paticipating in my work is the most impactful thing my parents did for me, they would also support and give suggestions. they start to understand what iam really doing and giving me full support

Contact Info:

• Website: https://magicfeifei.com
• Instagram: magicfeifei

Image Credits

yanqi magicfeifei wang