Emily Xie

Minted by 0xTechno

Acquired from above

Emily Xie, an artist with a lifelong passion for both art and computers, began her artistic journey experimenting with traditional methods. She pursued formal education at Harvard, earning degrees in history of art and architecture, as well as computational science and engineering. Initially, she worked as a software engineer but discovered her love for generative art around 2015, which she pursued alongside her job. Xie's career took off when she became an artist-in-residence at Pioneer Works, an artist and scientist-led nonprofit cultural center in Red Hook, Brooklyn that fosters innovative thinking through the visual and performing arts, technology, music, and science, in 2016. Her very recognizable style and techniques push the boundaries of generative and her numerous public collections have made her a well-known artist. She has also collaborated with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).

One of her breakthrough moments was the release of Memories of Qilin, a collection of 1,024 works, on Art Blocks in March 2022. This project drew inspiration from East Asian art, particularly Ukiyo-e woodblock prints, and aimed to capture their cohesive beauty and the impression of movement found in Chinese brush paintings. Conceptually, Xie delved into folklore and mythology, as her algorithm produced almost representational shapes and figures. She crrafted the parameters to maximize this effect. Many aspects of the series are culturally rooted as well. For example, the “Hong Bao” palette pays homage to the red envelopes of cash that are gifted during Lunar New Year and other significant gatherings as a way to impart luck and happiness. Outside of East Asian influences, she has been inspired by many other incredible artists across time and genres. For example: Zach Lieberman and his exploration of generative organic shapes; Tyler Hobbs and his measured usage of natural palettes; and early 20th century abstract artists like Jean Dubuffet, Wassily Kandinsky, Gustav Klimt, and Joan Miró in their play with form and color.

Memories of Qilin explores the legendary qilin, a creature with a dragon's head, a deer-like body adorned with fish scales, and a lion's mane. The title references a fabled chimerical beast found throughout East Asian mythology (while the qilin is its Chinese name, it is also known in Korea as the girin and Japan as the kirin) that represents prosperity and luck. The project invites viewers to interpret the life-like forms it generates, reminiscent of vague memories on the brink of actualization. The inclusion of "qilin" in the title reinforces the project's mythological theme and the chimerical quality of the series.