Here and Gone

Here and Gone

"I" exists in all works, and disappears in all works.

"Us" is an inward explosion. Multiple-exposure self-portraits on Polaroid and packfilm are spiritual excrement—screams, struggles, shame, and reconciliation that must be expelled, must be seen. These two mediums were chosen because excrement refuses delay; it demands an instantly visible physical form. Each image is a confrontation with oneself, impossible to retouch, impossible to duplicate—just as pain cannot be translated.

"Fragile" turns outward. The artist wears a mirror device into crowds and wilderness; the mirror surface shatters the body, scatters the light—sometimes protruding, sometimes vanishing entirely. This is the individual's true condition within the collective: you think you are visible, but you are only a reflection of your surroundings; you think you are solid, but you shatter at a touch.

The two projects form a closed loop: the former drains the interior outward, the latter tears the exterior inward. The self is both excrement and fragment; both screaming and vanishing. You see it, but you cannot grasp it.

This is not an exhibition about photography. This is a person tearing herself apart before the lens, then trying to reassemble a standing human form. What you see is not images—it is wreckage and ash.

Text/ Ruya Qian

ARTIST: Ruya Qian

Ruya Qian was born in Suzhou, post-edited in San Francisco, and is currently based in Shanghai.

Her artistic practice spans photography, moving images, and installations.

Qian's work has been exhibited globally, including in the U.S., Canada, China, Japan, the UK, Australia, and Italy, among others. Her pieces have been featured in prominent publications such as Yishu: Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art (Canada), D La Repubblica (Italy), and numerous Chinese media outlets. Several of her works are held in the collections of notable art museums.