We’d like you to meet our lovely and thoughtful artist partner, Luzhen Qui who uses her practice to “make paintings or drawings with forms, contents through my visual thinking.“
In her works Luzhen is always searching for ways of dealing with contents and forms by organizing objects from chaotic contents into re-arranged forms. She is a Chinese American multi-disciplinary artist creating both representational and abstract artworks.
A LOOK INSIDE THE ARTIST’S STUDIO
What inspires you to make art?
“My work is much based on the bi-cultural life experiences. My recent work is much more rooted with Taoist philosophy yet the structures of my work are totally from the western art influences. It is about the configuration of the forms and contents through my working process.
“Dream of my Purple Mountain” series are my ongoing pursuit which focuses on my Chinese culture background. I want to make a dreamscape from my memory. By juxtaposing fragments of memories from my childhood, Chinese traditional fabric textiles, old Chinese legends, the classic novels I read.. I want to tell stories about childhood’s fantasies, my childhood wonderland. “Ode to a Nightingale” series are monotype collages on wood panels.
After I’ve been living in metro Detroit for 26 years, I realized that I’d been obsessed by the Great Lakes since the first time I visited Lake Superior. The rocks, the stories of the shipwrecks at the bottom of the Great Lakes and water… all goes into my fantasy. It is my soul, my dream, and my destiny. I found that creating work with monotype is a way to express my dream of the Great Lakes.
Rocks are a micro cosmo of the mountains in China. It is believed that rocks have a concentrated amount of natural energy and symbolized the dwelling places of the Daoist immortals. Rockeries is one of the Chinese garden design elements. In my work, I build my own rockeries with my monotype collages.”
Do you create spontaneously or are you a planner?
“Maybe both, When I paint figure painting from a life model, I am a planner. I follow different stages of the life painting by observing the body structures. I have to follow the oil painting’s process, step by step, build up the medium fat over lean… However, If I create my work, I would follow different stages. I start with free drawing or painting some lines and shapes with different of energy force . And then, I cut the images pieces by pieces and re-arrange them and making collage together. I have to making sure the collaged image will be transformed into an interesting new image from the free drawing or painting.”
My recent work is much more rooted with Taoist philosophy yet the structures of my work are totally from the western art influences. It is about the configuration of the forms and contents through my working process.
Tell us why your artwork is suitable in luxury homes, office spaces, hotels, and/or restaurants.
“I believer my work will look more energized with a spacial environment. My work is much more associated with my culture background especially rooted with the Taoist philosophy. A public space such as an office space, hotel or restaurant would have more exposure with different visual interpretation.”
Embrace Creatives hand-picks artists that rise to Andrea’s high standards. In what ways do you
feel your art business is professional?
“I have devoted my whole life to be an artist, which means I have to spend my time, my mind and energy to create art everyday no mater how difficult to struggle, survival as an artist. My work has been frequently show in reputable galleries and museums both in US and China. I had been teaching and hosting some international workshop at institutions and Universities.”
Do you have a favorite tool or medium and if so, why is it your favorite?
“Sumi ink on rice paper are the fascinating mediums for me. The sumi ink is a profound medium with its thousands years of the practice in China. It is said ” The artists could build five subtle color tones with the black sumi ink.” which always fascinated me I also enjoy work on the Chinese mineral watercolor pigment which is a lightfast medium could last the color forever. I want to open dialog with the Chinese literati landscape aesthetic concept into my abstract paintings intertwining the forms, and contents with the sum ink and Chinese mineral watercolor pigment.”
In China, an appreciation for rocks stemmed from ancient religious attitudes toward nature, which included the veneration of mountains. Rocks were believed to have a concentrated amount of natural energy and symbolized the dwelling places of the Daoist immortals.
What famous person would you like to own your artwork?
“I would love the Chinese ambassador own my work.
