""This was my first exposure to contemporary art," he says. "Unlike in China, where art education primarily focuses on technical skills and the depiction of the objective world, in New York City, I encountered diverse works and artists who employ various visual mediums to address subjects that I deeply care about. I found this incredibly inspiring. For the first time, I realised that my paintings could become powerful tools to express myself, my perspectives and my stories.""
"Not only did he immerse himself in the culture, visiting exhibitions, artist studios and talks, but he also developed his own voice as a painter. "I started to focus on my own identity and the friends around me. Having left home for a completely unfamiliar environment, we faced a profound sense of emotional displacement," he explains. As such, his work started to delve into the lives of queer diasporic communities, exploring their "bodies, desires and vulnerabilities"."
Li Wang moved from Beijing to New York to study Visual Arts at Columbia University and encountered contemporary art for the first time. Exposure to diverse works and varied visual media inspired him to view painting as a means to express personal perspectives and stories. Immersion in exhibitions, studios and talks helped him develop a distinct painterly voice. Distance from home prompted a focus on identity and close friendships. His practice began to explore queer diasporic lives, emphasizing bodies, desires and vulnerabilities. Interest in history and society led to examinations of masculinity and its relation to objectification.
Read at Creative Boom
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