Creative Portraits
A portrait painted from who you are, not from how you sat.
Xiang Li has painted around twenty of these. Almost none of the sitters posed for her — several she has never met. She works from their photographs, from their books and talks, and from what her daughter tells her, and then she surrounds them with creatures: a lion for the respect somebody commands, a phoenix for a future, a dog because it is their dog. Every one of those choices is an argument about the person.
None of these paintings are for sale, and there is nothing to buy on this page. It is here to introduce the people in it — go and read their work.
Family and friends
The people Xiang Li paints because she loves them. These came first, and they are the reason the rest exist.
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Xiang Li's daughter; host of the Feisworld podcast -
The black-and-white portrait -
Producer, Feisworld Media -
Two childhoods on one silk -
Geoengineer, Zumba instructor, friend of the family -
Photographed framed and at an angle, so the plate is a crop and carries two small flash reflections. Nothing is written about her yet — who she is, and what the frogs are.
Voices
Guests from Fei Wu's Feisworld podcast. Xiang has met almost none of them — she painted each one from their work, their photographs, and what her daughter told her about them. A podcast archive, in watercolor on silk.
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Hospice and palliative care physician -
Journalist, author, host of On Being -
Film art director and animator, Hong Kong -
Writer on marketing and the work of making things -
Author and executive educator on long-term strategy -
Former FBI lead international kidnapping negotiator -
Comedian and writer -
Aerial straps duo; Cirque du Soleil
Commissioning one
Creative Portraits
What are creative portraits?
An introductionIn Xiang Li’s spare time, she loves creating portraits for friends and clients. For these creative portraits, Li often incorporates traditional elements from Chinese culture into her designs. Each portrait is unique and has many meanings built-in for the main character.
If you are interested in learning more about commissioned creative portraits, please get in touch with us here.