Ceramic artist whose artworks express her thoughts on women’s historical status
Liu Xi is a sculptor who uses clay and ceramics in a practical and craft-based manner. She is always searching for strong points of contact between form, technique, and material. She started her creative career in Jingdezhen after completing her studies in the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) in Beijing’s Sculpture Department. She continued to push the aesthetic and technical limits of ceramics while experimenting with new shapes, surfaces, and materials. Themes like sexuality and love, freedom and limitations, identity and self-discovery, femininity and masculinity, and many more are explored in her wonderfully made and inevitably sensuous sculptures. In order to connect and explore the language in clay that people can relate to, Liu Xi engages material and the techniques in a powerful dialogue that results in shapes. Liu Xi creates stories that combine craftsmanship and human life organization.
According to her, everything can be explained and conveyed by experience, familiarity with the tools and methods, addition and subtraction, and an understanding of when to cease. Her aim is to produce fresh insights and insightful visuals. In addition to China, Liu Xi has participated in a number of exhibits abroad, including in the United States, Portugal, Spain, Norway, Sweden, South Korea, Ecuador, Mexico, India, and the United Kingdom. Her pieces have won awards and received honorable mentions at several international Ceramic Biennales. She actively participates in residency programs in Bali, Taiwan, Mexico, India, South Korea, and Norway since she is constantly keen to explore new creative opportunities. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) in the United States, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the White Rabbit Collection in Sydney, Australia, the New Taipei City Yingge Ceramics Museum in Taiwan, the Ajuntament del Vendrell in Spain, Galila’s P.O.C. in Belgium, and the Municipality of Aveiro in Portugal are just a few of the esteemed public collections that have acquired Liu Xi’s artwork.
Liu Xi’s Instagram
This interview was first published in issue no. 17 of the free digital magazine Planet China.
What was the main impulse and inspiration behind your decision to pursue an artistic career? What does art symbolize to you? Who inspired you, and what is your artistic philosophy?
I was born in a small town in the north of China, a place that was conservative and oppressive, with a deeply ingrained patriarchal mindset that favored boys over girls. This imbalanced gender perception had a profound impact on my childhood and adolescence, filling me with feelings of inferiority and helplessness. At first, I didn’t know what art was, but it became a means for me to escape and break free. It allowed me to leave my hometown and go to Beijing to attend university. In this new environment, through the methods and mindset of art, I was able to nurture myself anew.
What truly influenced me were the women around my family and community, those who were often overlooked and forgotten. Their efforts and contributions went unacknowledged and unappreciated. I care deeply about these women, feel their pain, and love them dearly. As a result, women have become a significant theme in my work, and these profound life experiences serve as the foundation and source of my creativity.
Porcelain, Iron powder 3/3edition
Photo:Jan Søndergaard
Installation View © Kunstforeningen GL STRAND, DANMARK
How long did it take you to master the materials? What aspects of the sculpture-making process thrill you the most? How did you feel when you finished your first creation?
Mastering materials is like a bottomless pit; I believe there will always be new knowledge and unknowns to explore—it’s an endless process. Even now, there are still many materials and techniques I am unfamiliar with. It’s only through the passage of time and continuous trial and error that I have gained more experience. However, this kind of seasoned experience can also be terrifying, as it can easily lead to a loss of thoughtful engagement. I hope to maintain a certain distance and sense of unfamiliarity with the materials, even as I become more acquainted with them.
The three – dimensional space and tactile nature of sculpture and ceramics are incredibly fascinating. On a material level, your bodily movements and the imprints of your fingers are all embedded within the sculpture. On a spiritual level, your abstract thoughts are given concrete form. I believe that as AI continues to advance, the value of handmade objects will become even more significant. It seems I’ve already forgotten the feeling of my first creation, and it’s also hard to define exactly when that first creation took place.
What is your process for experimenting with new ceramic techniques, and how do technical challenges shape your work conceptually? How long does it take to complete a piece of artwork from the idea to the final product?
I have worked with ceramics in many places, such as Taiwan, South Korea, Mexico, India, Indonesia, and in China, including Yixing, Foshan, and Zibo. Each place has its own unique characteristics in terms of clay and firing techniques. I deeply admire the local craftsmen for their dedication to preserving and carrying on these traditions. For me, understanding a particular technique is not as important as exploring why they do it and how it is connected to the local society, economy, and other aspects. In fact, exploring ceramic techniques is something every practitioner should do. Everyone’s experience is different, and we are essentially building on the foundation laid by our predecessors to create a connection with the present, rather than simply repeating what they did. Therefore, living and creating in Jingdezhen, a city with a long history, provides a natural learning environment. However, the key for me is how to innovate based on this foundation.
Many of my works are created in parallel. Some pieces may take only a month or two to make, but the process of thinking and preparing can span several years. Each time the works are displayed in different spaces, they are given new life. Sometimes, several groups of creations are underway in the studio at the same time. I hope that my works are in an open state, full of life, and do not come to an end once I have finished making them. When they enter different places and meet different people, they should be able to “breathe.”
Installation View
© Shanghai Chun Art Museum
Installation View
© Shanghai Chun Art Museum
Installation View
© Shanghai Chun Art Museum
Can you share about a piece when experimenting led to an unexpected breakthrough in your artistic expression?
The “MaMa” series started with my own mother’s washboard. In 2014, I went back to my hometown to visit her. There was this old, decaying washboard that had been left in the corner of the yard. I decided to use it as inspiration for my ceramic work. Over the years, from 2015 to 2022, I collected 38 washboards from all over the country. They were all different, but each one had a story. Every forgotten washboard represented the life and sacrifices of an anonymous woman. When ceramics are fired, they shrink. The ceramic washboards ended up about 17% smaller than the real ones. It’s like a metaphor for how women age and become more fragile. When I displayed them in the art museum, they leaned against the wall, standing like monuments. Now, this collection has been acquired by LACMA in Los Angeles and the V&A Museum in London. I’m really happy that the stories of these unsung women are finally being showcased in such a respectable way.
Photo:Yan Haibo
Installation View
© Shanghai Pearl Art Museum
How do the physical properties and the tactile and transformative nature of clay reflect or contrast with the personal themes of self-discovery and freedom you explore?
Ceramics involves a multitude of techniques and modes of expression. For me, the precision of each technique and the articulation of artistic concepts have always been my pursuit. I’m not particularly drawn to purely artistic flows or the sensual aspects of materials. Instead, I yearn for a perfect blend of rationality and sensibility, and accuracy in expression.
In the piece titled “Our God is Great,” a metal-black female reproductive organ lies flat on the display table. The iron powder in the clay is transformed into a metallic, iron-black texture through fire and heat, symbolizing the transformation of inner strength. Meanwhile, the golden deity is suspended on the wall, representing self-empowerment. During the creation of “Our God is Great,” 40% of the sculptures cracked while the clay was drying, failed during the firing process, or got damaged during transportation. However, I documented every single sculpture and turned them into wallpaper, reflecting the lost and abandoned girls of our generation who were affected by the one-child policy.
How does the metaphor of shaping and reshaping reflect your own path of self-discovery and redefining your own artist identity?
Let me introduce my series of works titled “2020.” This collection captures the memories of the pandemic and quarantine that we all faced. I used traditional Jingdezhen porcelain bottles as the base and re-cut, deformed, twisted, and transformed them into vessels that can hold the emotions of the present moment—such as restlessness, irritability, anxiety, and uncertainty.
The surface of each bottle is covered with a layer of artificial moss, which grows along the shape of the porcelain. This moss symbolizes the false sense of freedom and flexibility we experienced during that time. Each bottle has a different shade of green, ranging from light to dark, representing the passage of time. Humans are prone to forgetting, and I hope this series serves as a reminder and a catalyst for self-reflection for both myself and the audience.
Each of my thematic works employs different techniques and creative approaches, but they are all closely related to the life of an artist. “Our God is Great” explores the relationship with the self, while “MaMa” represents the transformation of my closest relationships. In contrast, “2020” is a universal experience. I hope that my future works will have more depth and emotional impact, rather than being simply aesthetically pleasing or decorative. As an artist, I hope to engage in a dialogue with the human heart, rather than merely with the eyes.
Photo:Yan Haibo
Installation View
© Shanghai Pearl Art Museum
In the face of traditional norms in both ceramics and societal constructs, how do you maintain the freedom to innovate and redefine? How do you balance personal storytelling with universal themes?
Always, it’s essential to understand the history and aesthetics of ceramics and art. I believe that we should build on the achievements of our predecessors and move forward, rather than repeat or regress. It’s crucial to have a continuous learning ability. At the same time, I need to reset myself—don’t define myself, and don’t let others define me. The primal instincts and life experiences are the foundation of my creation. Art trends come and go, but only the true self remains. I enjoy my uniqueness.
What role does audience interpretation play in your artwork? Are their reactions something you consider during creation?
I’m open to any kind of feedback from the audience—positive or negative. That process makes my work more complete. When I’m creating, I only focus on my own feelings and approach it from an artist’s perspective, doing my best to make the work satisfying and without regrets. If the audience later finds something of themselves or feels a connection to the work, I would be honored.
with gold chroming
Photo: Ji Xiaoto
with gold chroming
Photo: Ji Xiaotong
International Women’s Day 2025 focuses on the theme “Accelerate Action”, What does empowerment mean to you, and how do you believe women can foster empowerment for themselves from diverse cultural backgrounds in everyday life?
For me, empowerment means removing definitions—definitions of women that come from all sides. Once something is defined, it essentially becomes a kind of limitation. As we grow, we gradually dismantle these definitions bit by bit.
Although the women’s movement is making different calls in various places, progress is actually very slow, and it is inevitably related to politics and economics. The progress in the most developed countries and the least developing countries is definitely different.
So, for the same issue, we need to keep repeating our calls. No stop. Since half of the world is made up of women, as long as women exist, feminism will always be necessary and essential.
Photos and images courtesy of Liu Xi
Featured image by photo by Luo Yang
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