Xie Qi: When Memory Becomes Image

Some images seem to tell a story without the need for words. This is the quiet power of Xie Qi's painting. One of the most compelling voices in China's new generation of artists, Xie Qi graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) in Beijing. She often begins with familiar subjects, such as people, plants, photographs and everyday objects, transforming them into visions that exist somewhere between reality and imagination. Nothing in her paintings is a straightforward representation of the visible world. Xie Qi observes, remembers and reinvents: she removes details, introduces new ones, dismantles forms and rebuilds them, allowing emotion rather than literal accuracy to shape the image. Even a flower can become a vessel for memory, desire and emotions that are difficult to define. Soft contours, delicately veiled colours and almost invisible brushstrokes create a quiet, contemplative atmosphere in which time seems to slow down. Her works do not offer immediate answers; instead, they invite viewers to linger, observe and leave room for their own imagination. For international visitors, the exhibition offers an opportunity to discover a more intimate and poetic side of contemporary Chinese painting, one that transforms the simplest subjects into evocative reflections on memory, perception and the fragility of human experience.