Lucy Liu

From painterly, fleshy nudes to delicate depictions of the human spine in resin or embroidery, Lucy Liu’s art lays bare themes of intimacy, belonging and memory. An internationally famous actor and director, Liu has been creating thought-provoking and visually striking artworks since the 1980s. Whether working in collage, photography, found objects, and paint, she foregrounds self-exploration, often drawing inspiration from her own childhood.

Born in 1968, in Queens, New York, in the 1980s, Liu would take to the streets with her camera, using the photos to create collages. Scouted aged 19, as her acting career took off, she continued to pursue art, exhibiting her work at her first show, Unravelling at Cast Iron Gallery in Soho, 1993, under her Chinese name, Liu Yu-Ling.

While Liu first pursued a bachelor's degree in Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Michigan, she later studied art at the New York Studio School from 2004 to 2006. After taking this intensive class, she shifted her practice towards painting, feeling that “I wasn’t able to express fully what I wanted with the photographs”. While citing her admiration for artists such as Willem de Kooning and Agnes Martin, Liu’s work is often personal and emotive, often exploring her own family and upbringing. She explains:

“Because we were an immigrant family and I am first-generation, I always had this imbalance of belonging… I think that art helps evaluate some of the psychology of yourself as a child, and to illuminate some things you may never have understood”.

Themes of belonging and identity run through Liu’s work. Her ongoing series ‘Lost and Found’, for example, embeds discarded objects into books. Collected over her lifetime, each item encompasses its story and place, stretching back to her childhood. These pieces challenge viewers to question their perceptions of use and belonging.

In What Was (2023), she explores the experiences of her mother - a Chinese woman who immigrated alone to the United States in 1960 at the age of 18. Liu produces her linear outline, based on a photograph from 1965, filled almost entirely by the surrounding landscape. On her the right side, a hand and brown clothing intersect her outline – barely perceivable remnants of who was once was, presented as a flickering presence still within her. In this way, Liu’s paintings evoke the palimpsest, visibility, and marginality to explore her family and identity.

Liu maintains a consistent studio practice alongside her work as an actor and director. She has received awards including the Award of Excellence from the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles. Her pieces have been featured in galleries such as the Gagosian Gallery and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Liu's bold artworks present an incisive exploration of her family, culture, and intimacy. Themes at the heart of human experience, her work resonates with viewers worldwide.