Xin Liu (artist)

Xin Liu (Mandarin Chinese: 劉昕; born 1991 in Xinjiang, China) is a contemporary artist and engineer whose work spans the fields of art, technology, and science. Known for her interdisciplinary approach, Liu combines elements of sculpture, installation, and digital media to explore themes such as human experience, perception, and the interaction between humans and technology.Art21, “Xin Liu's Inward Expeditions", Art:21, March 13, 2024] Liu currently works between New York City and London.
==Early Life and Education==
Liu was born in Karamay, in the province of Xinjiang, China. She received her Bachelor of Engineering in Measurement, Control Technology, and Instruments from Tsinghua University in Beijing. She later moved to the United States to pursue a Master of Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Master of Science in Media Arts and Sciences from the MIT Media Lab.Cathy Fan, “Chinese Artist Xin Liu Takes Us Inside Her Lab-Like London Studio, Where Engineering and Creativity Converge”, artnet, August 28, 2023]
==Career and Artistic Practice==
Liu's work often involves science and engineering and the use of cutting-edge technologies. She is known for incorporating scientific research into the artistic process, as well as for pursuing scientific results alongside her artistic projects.Xin Wang, "On Space Art", e-flux, January 2021Kat Herriman, Artist Xin Liu Lets Science-Backed Absurdity Take the Wheel, Cultured (magazine), June 28, 2022
==Selected Projects and Exhibitions==
In her project Living Distance, Liu sent one of her wisdom teeth to space, mounted atop a small micro-gravity mobility robot of her design. The payload was carried aboard a Blue Origin New Shepard rocket, which launched and returned to Earth in May 2019.Deborah Vankin, "Why artist and engineer Xin Liu sent her wisdom tooth into outer space", Los Angeles Times, Oct. 28, 2021Yxta Maya Murray, “Xin Liu”, Artforum, March, 2020] Liu has exhibited remnants of the returned payload as sculptures. In addition, Liu combined footage from the launch and payload with other materials to produce both a 2-channel video piece as well as a VR film. The latter premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020.Yxta Maya Murray, “Xin Liu”, Artforum, March, 2020]Andrea S. Kim, "Sundance VR Programming Showcased Much More Than Movies in a Headset", IndieWire, February 3, 2020
In Unearthing Futures, Liu and her collaborator Lucia Monge cultivated potatoes from seeds they had previously sent to the International Space Station, then planted and grew them in the garden at Pioneer Works in New York City as part of Liu's exhibition Seedlings and Offsprings there.Emma Burd and Humphrey Chen, "Extraterrestrial Taters Land in Amherst", The Amherst Student, September 27, 2023"Seedlings and Offsprings", Pioneer Works, July 7, 2023
==Awards and residencies==
* K11 Art Foundation Artist Prize, 2024Daniel Cassidy, "Adrian Cheng’s K11 Art Foundation Awards Inaugural Artist Prize to Xin Liu", ARTnews, March 25, 2024
* Karman Fellowship, 2022 "Karman Project Fellowship: Xin Liu", Karman Project, March 25, 2024
* Porsche Chinese Young Artist of the Year, 2021
* Silver Arts Projects Residency, World Trade Center (2001-present), 2021-2022
* SETI Institute Artist in Residence, 2019-present "SETI Institute Names 3 New Artists in Residence; 1 New Advisor",SETI Institute, Press release, Nov. 21, 2019"Xin Liu's Inward Expeditions",SETI Institute, Mar 13, 2024
* Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia, 2020 "Xin Liu", Forbes Magazine, 2020
* X Museum Triennial Award, 2020"Congratulations to Xin Liu on receiving the 1st X Museum Triennial Award",Make Room Gallery, Press release, Dec 1, 2020
* Artist Residency and Van Lier Fellowship, Museum of Arts and Design, 2018"Museum of Arts and Design Presents an Exhibition of Works by 2018 Artist-in-Residence Xin Liu",Museum of Arts and Design, Press release, Feb 27, 2019
* Sundance Institute New Frontier Story Lab Fellowship, 2019Sundance Institute Announces 2019 New Frontier Story Lab Fellows, Sundance Institute Press release, May 16, 2019
Category:People from Xinjiang
Category:1991 births
Category:Chinese people
Category:Contemporary artists
Category:Engineers