Entering Fei Li’s Abstract Ink World — Non-xuan Ink

I have always believed that, at different stages of our lives, we return again and again to the same question: Who am I?

I was born into a military family in the 1960s and grew up in a military compound. Order, restraint, and independence were ways of life I learned early on. That quiet but steadfast strength shaped how I would later face the world, and how I would make art.

Later, my encounter with ink painting on materials other than xuan paper became a way of entering into dialogue with myself. The flow of water and ink across paper is itself something unfolding in the moment; I rarely set a goal for the image. When preparing the ground, I let intuition lead—energy and the feelings of the moment spread naturally across the paper. Only once the ground is laid does reason enter: I follow its natural traces with my brush, and the work begins from there.

Water and ink flow naturally across the paper. Every brushstroke expresses what I feel in that moment, and none can be taken back. Ultimately, the image settles into formlessness. This unfettered process has allowed me to discover freedom in making art.

Black has always held an important place in my work. It is neither heavy nor closed off, but a space capable of holding emotion and thought.

Light and shadow emerge from black; strength grows in the darkness—quiet, yet carrying weight.

I do not give my works titles, and I rarely explain the images. Once a work is finished, it begins to move away from me and into the viewer’s experience. Each encounter gives rise to a new understanding. This openness is something I cherish.

I value the wisdom of “seeing through, without spelling it out.” Understanding without taking things apart; restraint without indifference. This attitude is present in my work as well.

If my work can enter into dialogue with others, I hope it offers a gentle but firm reminder:

Allow yourself to be unique.

There is no need to conform, no need to rush to be defined.

Follow your own inner rhythm, and move forward at your own pace.

Freedom, independence, openness, perseverance—

These are what I believe in, and what I hope can be felt in my work.