Life I 2018

Qin Yufen made this installation, Life I, out of bamboo, fabric, and ink. Can you imagine the artist in the studio, carefully arranging the bamboo scaffolding? I like to think about the artist's touch, that brush loaded with ink meeting the blank fabric. Those delicate, dark strokes create a dance of birds across the light, airy material, turning the whole room into a kind of aviary. I can almost hear the soft rustle of wings. Each mark feels so intentional, yet spontaneous, like capturing a fleeting moment. It reminds me of Chinese landscape painting, but with a contemporary twist. These aren't mountains and rivers, but something more ephemeral, more about movement and change, that feeling of life taking flight. Artists are always riffing off each other like that. Yufen’s installation isn’t just something to look at, but a space to be in, a world of its own making.