We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Junyi Liu . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Junyi below.
Hi Junyi , thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?
Recently, I made a new friend. After looking at some of my works, he quickly labeled me as a “portrait painter.” I was stunned, because it’s such a narrow category. My paintings are not just about faces, but more about aesthetics and meanings. I also do performance art, video art and installations, sometimes including music I composed. Being called a “portrait painter” feels like getting a four-dimensional world flattened into a two-dimensional plane.
I firmly believe that contemporary artists should not limit themselves to a particular medium or genre, which is like a bird plucking feathers from its own wings. Mediums and subject matters are ultimately just modes of expression. Just as some people choose to be directors, dancers, singers, or photographers, they are all expressing ourselves in the ways they enjoy and excel at. A creative person is, first and foremost, a person, not a servant of a medium. Currently, I define myself as a multidisciplinary artist, and I’m constantly evolving. Many years ago, I thought I was just a realism painter. Even earlier, I had no idea I would make a living from art; I thought I would become a Chinese teacher. Keeping an open mind and spirit of exploration is the key to unleashing creativity and finding the value of life. Besides art, I play musical instruments, have been in a choir, written scripts, poems, and novels, and enjoy acting. These interests and experiences will nourish my future artistic creations in unique ways.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Junyi Liu, and I was born and raised in Zhuhai, China. I am now based in New York City. In 2013, I got into a university in China majoring in Chinese, but I quickly realized it’s the wrong path for me. In 2014, I came to the United States alone to study art. I graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2018 with a major in Painting, and moved to New York City. I started taking workshops, doing freelance work, and pursuing my own creative projects. Now I have a studio in Hell’s Kitchen, where I spend most of my time.
I believe my uniqueness lies in my life experiences. I have many interests and hobbies, have lived in many cities, and have met many diverse people, which made me very open minded and curious about the world. What I am most proud of is that despite so much trauma and setbacks in life, I am still alive and well, not giving up my values, and striving to do what I want to do. My hardships have given me a great ability to empathize with others and have nourished my creative work. Maintaining integrity, not being swayed or knocked down by external forces, is the everlasting principle of being a person and an artist.
In my paintings, I create whimsical, vibrant scenes with characters in outfits evoking different historical periods, as a way to mirror the violence and oppression in the real world. Ugliness often hides behind beauty, and terrifying things are often harmless at first glance. I use romantic colors and exquisite vintage costumes to create dreamlike scenes, but there are no carefree protagonists; instead, there are surging undercurrents and trying to grasp their unpredictable fates.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
I want to express what people dare not express but is very important. Every minute in this imperfect world, individuals, families, and communities are experiencing tremendous injustice and struggling in pain. Looking back at ourselves, we are also oppressed, hurt, and exploited, either obviously or implicitly. I cannot remain silent.
Last year, I did performance art piece called “The Making of a Mad Woman.” Wearing a wedding dress, I woke up on the ground surrounded by rose petals. I tried to stand up and walk, only to find my ankles chained to a pillar. I struggled to break free, searched everywhere for the key, all in vain. In despair, tears streaming down my face, I gradually lost my sanity. Finally, I saw a hallucination in the air, reached out to touch it, and then fell heavily to the ground, never to rise again. Suddenly, rose petals fell from the sky, covering my body. Then, everything returned to silence.
This work symbolizes the tragedies of countless women throughout history. They were deceived by sweet lies, thinking that happiness awaited them in life, but they were imprisoned like livestock, losing their freedom and dignity as human beings. This work was directly inspired by the Xuzhou Chained Woman Incident in China. This woman was trafficked to a small village and forced to give birth to eight children. When the public discovered her in 2022, she was found chained to a dilapidated shed, her wounds from abuse festering, her mind deranged. Her story broke my heart. When people accuse a woman of madness, they strip her of her humanity. Then, when she succumbs to insanity, they gather around and say, “Look, she’s truly lost her mind!”
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
For me and some artists, art and life are one. Therefore, “work and life balance” does not apply to us. My artworks are not mere commodities. I look into my soul, and express my insights in a unique way. When I go out with friends in the city, I often meet them at museums or galleries. Every time I travel, I must visit local art museums. This is not because I’m pushing myself to learn, but because I truly enjoy seeing art. I wear clothes that may seem exaggerated, not because I want to dress like the characters in my paintings, but because I love the style. What I do outside and inside the studio complement each other and are inseparable. I have no concept of workdays and days off, no fixed hours. Every living moment becomes the source of my inspiration. Being an artist can be challenging. It’s a profession that requires good time management, financial management, emotional management, sociability, strong perseverance and a lot of patience. The word “artist” is special to me. My efforts are to realize my own life value and to live up to the title of “artist”.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.junyiliuart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/junyi_liu_art/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Junyiliuart
Image Credits
Artist in studio photos by Ye Cheng