Cynthia Li

Bamboo/Not Flat (2022)
Digital Print 18" x 24"

Installation made from yarn wrapped around bamboo. Translated to “not flat” in Chinese (transliterated biǎn bù), the work is a nod to the artist’s dual identities as Chinese and American, communicating the English word for bamboo through Chinese characters. But the words are also a questioning of the picture plane and photography as a medium to document installation. While the viewer understands the photo itself is flat, the words within the photo exist in a three dimensional space, and the words themselves tell the viewer that.

Cynthia Li (she/her)

Cynthia Li is currently a first year art student at New York University. She was born and raised in Queens, New York, and was raised by Chinese immigrant parents who have supported her art career since she was five. She loves working with children, especially during her time as a summer camp art teacher. She has also illustrated a children's book that explores a variety of Asian foods.

Artist Statement

A lot of my work is defined by my experience growing up as Chinese-American in a large city, and my relationship with the various cultures I identify with. In part I feel that my work brings me closer to the place my parents grew up in, exploring Chinese tradition and cultural practices, but other times it's representative of the shallow understanding of what being Chinese means. In a way, my work is illustrative of both the romanticized view I have of being Chinese diaspora, but also my unique experience identifying with countless other Asian American diaspora. So much of my work relies on looking internally and discovering what parts of myself to uncover and explore.

As I am experimenting with countless media (such as installation, photo, etc.), I try to choose a form that allows the work to communicate further, and allows me to question not only the subject of the work, but the medium as well. I'm excited to make work that has me continually asking questions, and builds upon itself.