Meet Xinyu Liu

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Xinyu Liu a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Xinyu, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I grew up in a metro city in China where such alienation was emphasized. The city feels like a giant multi-faceted crystal, in which layers of glass mirrors dissociate us from our surroundings. Such an environment shapes my perspective a lot on my path to becoming an artist. As a photographer, I’m always drawn to the distance between me and the objects that I look at. Oftentimes, such distance draws me into strangers – How do I find myself attracted to them? How close yet unreachable they are. Then the distance reminds me of the separation – What’s in between? What separates us? How does architecture intervene in our relationship with each other and the surrounding environment? These inquiries lead me to observations of the social function and influences of the urban landscape.

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

My photographic work is primarily invested in observing the social function of urban landscape and digesting the visibility of architecture’s power implications. My work also concerns the conflicts between personal memories and overarching narratives of history. In my practice, I often try to reconstruct a psychological landscape that transforms historically and socially significant sites into narrative memories as an indexical condition of retaining the past. Through that process, I aim to find my echoes of voice within the infrastructure of modernity and redraw attention to the interconnected structure underneath the facade of democracy. I always find my photographic practice as a “making while learning it” thing in my life. It pushes me to explore the surrounding built environment and see how they function/who is using them. It certainly brings a lot of thinking and reflection for me to continue my engagement with curiosity.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

1) Observation & Curiosity: Making While Learning it

As an artist working on long-term project, the initial inquiries and interests are often triggered by pure coincidences in our daily life. it takes a long process of research before I realize what caught my attention initially. Essentially, the current project “Through the Revolving Door” was initiated by my attempts of trying to find a public bathroom in a city without paying for a cup of coffee. It draws me to look and gaze at the facade of those privatized public spaces.

2)Understanding the Medium: Knowing What Art Can and Cannot Do

Often times people either overestimate or underestimate the power of art. I think the best advice is to know what your medium is capable of. Yes, art is really powerful. Yet, there are many important issues in this world that art can’t/isn’t the best option to deal with.

3)Coping with advice, criticism

I always take other people’s opinions/criticisms more as an alternative option. I will neither completely accept nor ignore them. I think of them as the other party in life. I won’t let you rule over what I create, but your opinions are certainly worth thinking about. 

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

I’d love to collaborate with architecture historian or any active architect/urban planner who is interested in the construction/representation of public space and any relevant projects surrounding spatial construction.
My instagram account is: the_other_sea
Feel free to reach out to me!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.xinyuliustudio.com
• Instagram: the_other_sea

Image Credits

All images credit to myself.