Lihong Bai began learning traditional Chinese painting at age 6. Influenced by Taoist philosophy and Foucault’s spatial theory, she developed a unique style that merges traditional techniques with contemporary approaches. Dedicated to pushing the boundaries of painting through performance and media, Lihong’s work focuses on Asian identities amid cultural change, Chinese women’s social attributes, Generation Z’s perspective, and personal unconscious struggles. She also explores heterotopias in different spaces, delving into the relationship between life philosophy, feminism, nature, and science.
Lihong Bai’s work has been showcased at the Malta Biennale, Milan International Film Festival, Beijing Time Museum, and various galleries in London, Japan, and Paris. She received the Hong Kong Best Contemporary Artist Newcomer Award and has been featured in Art-Net, Artplugged, Trebuchet Magazine, FAD Magazine, Artron Art, Art China, and China Contemporary Art Network.
In recent years, I have used different media to expand the boundaries of painting. Through performance, media, and animation, I have continued to pay attention to issues such as the relationship between body and nature, Asian identity in cultural change, Generation Z, and contemporary feminism.
This multi-media creation and self-analysis process has ignited my desire to study painting in depth. In the next year, I will focus on the potential of visual behaviour in space, explore the obstacles of media to body and space, and study the impact of current social and cultural changes on Asian identity.
At the same time, I pay attention to the practice of action painting. In the study of East Asian star worship and iconography, I will re-deconstruct East Asian traditional painting through body movements, stimulate the body to spontaneously present a visual state, and try to guide this spontaneity.
Li Hong Bai,
Selected Works
The work “Weeds” was inspired by cultural migration and explores the life state of Asian identity within cultural mobility. By reconstructing traditional oriental paintings, I examined heterotopias in different spaces. Using a 20-meter painting scroll, combined with sound and performance, I created a fluid, ephemeral, and unstable heterotopia in a limited space. This process reflects the pursuit of belonging amidst immigration and celebrates a fluid, non-normative identity, a free body, and a creative life state. This 30-hour visual meditation made me feel real and connected to the surrounding spaces, yet the process also felt unreal, as perception required passing through all virtual points until extinction.
Lihong Bai developed a rebellious mood directed inward, turning against her former self. “The Joy of Fish and Water” exemplifies a Chinese woman’s unique approach to painting. Over fifteen years, she abandoned traditional Chinese ink painting for more expressive and rebellious action painting. Using red toner and rice paper, she vividly conveyed desire, portraying herself as a fish in water. This style allowed her to express her understanding of desire and love with strength and passion. Despite challenging traditional artistic practices, she reconciled with her inner self through this new technique.
Li Hong Bai believes that from birth, we have a complete self. Influenced by Chinese philosophy since childhood, she sees life as a journey to rediscover this true self. One circle represents the original self; multiple circles represent the excesses: desires. Putting Desire on The Table
MORE about Li Hong Bai’s work: HERE
Coming up for Li Hong Bai for the rest of 2024 – An upcoming exhibition in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art Bejing (MOCA Bejing) will open in mid-August. Following that, a partnership with the Shanghai International Art Festival will commence in October. In November, there will be an exhibition at Stepney City Farm, along with in-depth collaborations with local galleries in London. Additionally, Royal College of Art MA, Painting 23- 24 will exhibit in Beijing’s 798 Art District in December.
This November Li Hong Bai will move into a new studio in London, supported by the Second Floor Studio Art Foundation.
