The Alchemy II
Size: Variable Size
Artist: Xinyi Liu
Materials: 35mm Negative Film
Year of work: 2024
Description:
Can destruction be a form of creation?
This series explores the fragile space between transformation and loss. Shot deep in the woods, Liu merges fragments of her own body with the natural world, creating scenes where skin, light and leaf blend into something timeless. The process wasn’t just photographic but ritualistic: after developing the 35mm negatives, she burned them. A deliberate act of ruin that birthed unexpected shapes, distortions, and spectral echoes.
What emerged feels ancient and elemental, like finding memory preserved in ash. The result is haunting and tactile, inviting viewers to look past perfection and into the raw process of becoming. Liu blurs the line between human and earth, form and fracture, asking whether we must sometimes destroy the image to see the truth. This is a work about letting go, about surrendering to change, and honouring what’s left behind.