We recently connected with Yanmei Jiang and have shared our conversation below.

Yanmei, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I have two projects that mean a lot to me: “Me and Me” and my current work on energy and color.

In traditional Chinese culture, there’s often a preference for boys over girls. Growing up in a big family with many conflicts and traditions, I felt guilty and lacked confidence as a girl. This inspired me to create, to find meaning, and to break boundaries.

“Me and Me” is a photography work, about self-exploration in relationships. It blurs the boundaries between male and female. I also want to be seen and find my value through this work.

The energy and color project expresses my inner energies through color. The strong or soft colors reflect life’s and the environment’s impact on me and resonate with the repressed part of me. Unfolding these energies helps me find inner peace and shows women’s resilience.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I began my journey as a photographer. After graduating from college, I worked as a photo editor in the media for a few years before transitioning to freelance photography. “Me and Me” project is about self-exploration in relationships in China, and it also tries to blur the boundary between man and woman. This work has earned me some awards, including the XITEK EOS New Talent Award and the Taipei New Talent Award. It has also been collected by the Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung Foundation in Germany and the Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum in China. I was honored to be featured in the book “About Us. Young Photography In China,” alongside contemporary artists like Cao Fei, Ren Hang, and the founders of the Three Shadows Art Centre, Rongrong & Inri. In 2018, I got a photography mission from the China Port Museum.

In 2021, I pursued a Master of Fine Arts at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York. After graduation, I was fortunate to receive a residency at Chashama.

During my Fine Arts program, I experimented with various art forms to confront and reconcile my deeply buried contradiction. I believe this drive for self-exploration stems from a lack of love and strictness in my childhood. I found that painting offered a more direct way to express myself. My first painting series, “The Softness in Your Eyes,” is about extracting myself from a very intimate relationship and reflecting on it through objects in my memories.

Through this journey, I discovered that combining energy and color helps me navigate inner conflicts, leading to my current “Unfolding”(temporary name) series. I draw energy from my life and surroundings, transforming it into color. Creating art has liberated me and taught me that self-love is the key to endless love. This realization has shifted my perspective on life.

I also have a project involving an Asian girl avatar predating the “Unfolding” series. I want to say more through this work, but I am not yet ready to fully express it, so it remains on hold. As I open up, I find I have much to convey through my art. I need support and time to share these expressions fully.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

I am an artist in my late thirties. I changed my art form in a new environment and then encountered a big barrier. For me, artistic creation is closely related to life experience, and the understanding and enlightenment of life have a profound impact on creation. Age should not be a disadvantage for creation. Experience and enlightenment should be an advantage for creation. I hope that artists over thirty can still get support.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Our world is undergoing an unprecedented transformation with AI. I am a staunch humanist. I love life and nature. Through my works, I express the vulnerability and power of life, its emotional richness, and the pursuit of spiritual freedom.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jiangyanmei.com/
• Instagram: @yanmeijart

Image Credits

1. photography work “Me and Me”
2. “The Softness in Your Eyes” 01
3. “The Softness in Your Eyes” 02
4. Untitled
5. Unfolding 01
6. Unfolding 02
7. Unfolding 03
8. Unfolding 04