Liu Yi was born in Jiang Nan, Shanghai. He is an associate professor and deputy dean of the College of Art and Design in Shanghai Institute of Technology, and member of the Chinese Artists Association.
For many years, he painted watercolour series of the local scene where he comes from: Liu Yin has a sentimental attachment to Jiang Nan, a village situated along the canals of Shanghai. He’s recieved many awards for this watercolour landscapes, but since some years he is succesfully painting portraits and figures in watercolour.
Liu Yi is very fond of using wet paper where softness and thickness are created and blanced in harmony. He knows the language of the water and exploits it to its fullest advantage.
Painting in quick brush strokesand finishing the painting in a high tempo enables the finished work to appear natural and unintentional, bringing out the appealing effect of the watercolour.
The fascinating thing about Liu Yi’s watercolours is that, despite clearly working with a very wet technique, he manages to achieve superb control of his subject matter: the figures are beautifully drawn and painted, the material of the dresses and shoes depicted cleverly and convincingly while fully exploiting the inherent qualities of the medium.
[…] Liu Yin […]