This January, Element Art Space (formerly known as SBin Art Plus) presents Glorious Legend Of Chinese Pi Xiu, a solo oil painting exhibition that focuses on Pi Xiu, a mythical winged animal of traditional Chinese culture that symbolises power and wealth, by upcoming artist Wang Xiao Qing.

Part lion, dragon and phoenix, the Pi Xiu is featured prominently in ancient Chinese architecture as auspicious guardians that can be found guarding the roofs of imperial residences and tombs. Its voracious appetite for wealth – which it consumes and retains due to a lack of an anus – makes it a significant Feng Shui wealth attractor and preserver, and is much valued and sought after by modern day collectors.

Xiao Qing is one of the first Chinese artists to paint the Pi Xiu. She brings out the creature’s dominating essence by using bright and bold colours with a gentle edge. Combining this with western oil painting techniques and the use of peony flower and lotus as accompaniments to the Pi Xiu, her works exude the oriental charm. Accentuating its relationship with wealth in her collection of 16 paintings, Xiao Qing surrounds the Pi Xiu with jade accents, a colour that is considered as a colour of wealth.

About the Artist

Born in 1965 in Guizhou, Shenyang Province, China, Wang Xiao Qing pursues a life of romance and freedom. She is one of the first Chinese artists to paint the Pi Xiu. By using mainly bright and bold colours with a gentle edge, her works feature the dominating essence of the lucky creature. Her works also display feminism through the frequent use of flowers, lotus leaves and silk; and her fine observation skill is reflected in her use of fine brushstrokes and colours to give the object a smooth edge and shine.

This is Xiao Qing’s first solo exhibition in Singapore but she has previously participated in both solo and group exhibitions in China, Taiwan and Indonesia. Due to her striking, extraordinary art style, her works have been sought after and collected by businessmen and art collectors from Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and Indonesia.

Xiao Qing’s ancestors are from Hebei, Tang Shan Province. She is currently based in Taiwan.