BIO+CV
11 5月 2023

BIO

Born (1986) in Guangzhou, China, Yanmei studied at the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. In 2021, she received a Master’s in Fine Arts at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York. Now, she is based in New York. 

Yanmei began her artistic journey with photography in China, gaining recognition for her series Me and Me. This work earned awards such as the 2016 Taipei Photo New Talent Award and the 2015 Xitek EOS New Talent Award. In 2020, it was collected by the Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung Foundation in Germany and the Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum in China. The series was also featured in the book ABOUT US: Young Photography in China (Hirmer Publishers, 2021). Yanmei’s photography has been exhibited in group shows across France, Denmark, Japan, China, the United States, and England and has been published in media outlets such as IMA Magazine, LensCulture, Tencent, and VICE China.

In 2021, Yanmei transitioned to painting and installation. Her work has since been showcased in New York galleries, including LatchKey Gallery and VillageOneArt Gallery. In 2023, she held an exhibition residency at ChaShaMa in NYC.

Statement

Yanmei’s art is her way of self-discovery, healing, and liberation. Growing up in a traditional Chinese culture that values boys more than girls, she often felt oppressed. These experiences have shaped her artistic journey.

Her early photography work explored self-identity within relationships in China. Through performance photography, she tried to blur the boundaries between masculinity and femininity, which reflects her inner struggles and questioning of traditional gender roles.

After coming to New York, she explored more art mediums and also tried to explore her deeper wounds. She is very sensitive to emotional changes in the environment and likes to use everyday things to create works that give people an emotional experience.

Currently, she mainly focuses on abstract color painting as a way to express the oppressed energies in her body. She tried to blend Chinese Calligraphy, ink painting, and abstraction, using flowing colors and brushstrokes to balance the energy of the inner self and the surrounding environment. As her art practice increasingly moves into the spiritual realm, she seeks to gently embrace her wounded inner child and begin a process of rebirth. Yanmei hopes her work will not only heal her but also resonate with and inspire others who have shared similar experiences.

CV

Education

  • 2021-2023, Master of Fine Arts, School of Visual Arts, New York, USA
  • 2006-2010, Bachelor of International Journalism, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, China

Awards and Honors

  • 2023, ChaShaMa residency, New York City, USA
  • 2016, Taipei Photo New Talent Award, Taiwan China.
  • 2016, Dummy Award Kassel, Shortlist, Germany.
  • 2016, Three Shadows Photography Award, Shortlist, China.
  • 2015, Xitek EOS New Talent Award, China.

Residency

  • 2025, in May and June, AnkhLave Residency on Governors Island, New York
  • 2023, ChaShaMa Residency, New York

Collections

  • 2020, Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung Foundation, Germany.
  • 2020, Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, China.

Exhibitions

  • 2025, Group Exhibition, Fragments- Valentine’s Day Group Show, New York, USA
  • 2024, Group Exhibition, Art Groove Art Show, New York, USA
  • 2024, Group Exhibition, Welcome to the Wonderland, CP Project Space, New York, USA
  • 2023, Group Exhibition, Playground and Dreams, ChaShaMa Gallery, New York, USA
  • 2023, Group Exhibition, Idylls & Reveries, VillageOneArt Gallery, New York, USA
  • 2023, Group Exhibition, Cement, TaiL of A Gecko, Temple Gallery & Tutu Gallery, New York, USA.
  • 2023, Group Exhibition, Echo Box, Latchkey Gallery, New York, USA.
  • 2023, Group Exhibition, Stockwell Collective, Boston, USA.
  • 2021, Group Exhibition, Wild Horses’, Sim Smith Gallery, London, English.
  • 2018, Group Exhibition, 17th DongGang International Photo Festival, DongGang, Korea.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, Les Rencontres De La Photographie, Arles, France.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, LensCulture Winter Exhibition, online.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, Photography Handmade Book, Lishui Photography Festival, Lishui, China.
  • 2017, Solo Exhibition, Me and Me, Ray Art Center, Shanghai, China.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, The Port and the Image Project: Documenting China’s Harbor Cities, China Port Museum, China.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, 2nd Ningbo International Photography Week, Ningbo, China.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, La Maison de Z “Made In China”, Arles, France.
  • 2017, Group Exhibition, Record Keeping-Invitation Exhibition of International Photography at Xi’an, Xi’an, China.
  • 2016, Shanghai Photofair, Shanghai, China.
  • 2016, Group Exhibition, Lianzhou Foto Festival, Lianzhou, China.
  • 2016, Group Exhibition, Taipei Photo Festival, Taipei, Taiwan China.
  • 2016, Group Exhibition, Xitek New Talent Award, PHOTOFAIRS Shanghai, China.
  • 2016, Group Exhibition, The 8th Fotobook Festival Kassel, Germany / Beijing, China.Fotoleggendo, Rome, Italy; PhotoIreland, Dublin, Ireland; Fotogalleriet, Oslo, Norway; Organ Vida Festival, Zagreb, Croatia; Month of Photography Festival, Bratislava, Slovakia; Encontros da Imagem, Braga, Portugal; Photobook Week, Aarhus, Denmark; Format Festival, Derby, UK.
  • 2016, Group Exhibition, Three Shadows Photography Award, Beijing/Xiamen, China.
  • 2015, Group Exhibition, Gucang Dummy Award Martin Parr Edition, Lanzhou Foto Festival, Lanzhou, China.
  • 2015, Group Exhibition, CONNECT: A Curated Group Exhibition of LensCulture Network Photographers.
  • 2015, Group Exhibition, Lishui Photography Festival, Lishui, China.
  • 2015, @Daily Snapshot, Pingyao International Photography Festival, Pingyao, China.
  • 2013, Group Exhibition, En Ning, The Fence, Volume: Birmingham’s Art, Book, & Print Fair, Birmingham, UK.
  • 2013, Group Exhibition, Lishui Photography Festival, Lishui, China.
  • 2013, Group Exhibition, From Print to Publishing: The Changing Role of the Book in China and the UK, Chinese Arts Center, Manchester, UK.
  • 2012, Group Exhibition, Times Museum Community Art Festival, Guangzhou, China.
  • 2012, Group Exhibition, Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale, Japan.
  • 2012, Group Exhibition, Caochangdi Photo Spring, Beijing, China.

Publications

  • ABOUT US. Young Photography in China

Publisher: Hirmer Publishers, Munich

ISBN 978-3-7774-3656-2

Date: 2021

Artists: Adou / Birdhead / Cai Dongdong / Cao Fei / Chen Ronghui / Chen Wei / Chen Wenjun & Jiang Yanmei / Cheng Alex Huanfa / Fan Ye / Gao Bo / Gao Mingxi / Jiang Pengyi / Jiang Zhi / Li Yang / Liang Xiu / Liao Pixy / Liu Ke & Huang Huang / Liu Rachel / Liu Tao / Luo Yang / Mo Yi / Mu Ge / Ren Hang / Rong Rong / Rong Rong & Inri / Shen Wei / Shi Yangkun / Sun Yanchu / Wang Bing / Wang Ningde / Wei Bi / Wen Fang / Weng Fen/ Yang Fudong / Yin Xiuzhen / Zhang Huan / Zhang Kechun / Zhang Xiao;

  • The Port and The Image: Documenting China’s Harbor Cities

Published by Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House

ISBN 978-7-5535-0889-4

Date: 2017

Photographers: Chen Wenjun & Jiang Yanmei, Huang Zhengwei, Li Chaoyu, Xu Hao, Yang Yuanyuan, Zheng Chuan, Zhu Lanqing

Publish

IMA Magazine, Lens Culture, Tencent·To Live, Artco China Magazine, Chip Foto Video Magazine, Citizine Magazine, New Weekly Magazine, Marie Claire the Magazine, Chinese Entrepreneur Magazine, Economic Weekly Magazine, Blog Weekly Magazine, CBN Weekly Magazine, Portrait Magazine, South Reviews Magazine, People‘s Photography, VICE China, Yogurt Magazine, Edge of Humanity Magazine, Tencent News, Netease News, Sina News, Artron Network, The Paper Network, China Photographers Association Network and other publications.

Workshops:

2013, One of the mentors of a photography book workshop, Lishui International Photography Festival, Lishui, China.

2013, Held a handmade photography book workshop at Fei Gallery, Guangzhou, China.

2012, Held a Self-publishing book workshop, Times Museum Community Art Festival, Guangzhou, China.

Talks:

2016, Me in Private Images—From Life Struggles to Social Realities, Ray Art Center, Shanghai, China.

Shows

Group show, Art Groove, New York, US, 2024

ChaShaMa Residency, a group show Playground and Dreams at ChaShaMa Gallery, New York, US, 2023. ↓

Group shows Idylls & Reveries, VillageOneArt Gallery, New York, US, 2023. ↓

Group shows Echo Box, Latchkey Gallery, New York, USA, 2023.↓

Group show, Wild Horse, SIM-SMITH Gallery, London, England, 2021

Group show, Donggang International Photo Festival, Donggang, Korea, 2018

Group show, The Port and The Image: Documenting China’s Harbor Cities, China Port Museum, Ningbo, China, 2017

Group show, Taipei Photo New Talent Award, Taipei, 2016

Group show, XITEK New Talent Award exhibition, Shanghai, China, 2016

Group show, Three Shadow Photography Award, Three Shadow Art Center, Beijing, China, 2016

Solo show, Me and Me, Ray Art Center, Shanghai, China, 2016