Ann Liu, AKA “CREATRIX” (b. 2000), is a Chinese-American Los Angeles-based artist, model, and founder originally from the Bay Area.
Inspired by deeply rooted traditions of ancestral piety and their subversions by Americana, Ann conceives abstract concepts of sensuality, femininity, and healing through surrealist figuration. Her art involves avid introspection and self-analysis-as-muse, humorously acknowledging the contradictions of narcissism and vulnerability in today’s cultural climate and age of surveillance capitalism. Vibrant, emotional, and visceral, her meticulous work reflects the minutiae of life experiences, transmuting everything from pain to euphoria.
Hi Ann! Thank you for sitting down with me. First question that I always ask. How does a regular day look like for you in Los Angeles?
Hi! Thanks for having me, happy to be here. I usually wake up around 7 AM, take my vitamins, water my plants, and then make coffee. I have a daily yoga and meditation practice, then head to the gym or a pilates class. I love fitness and find intentional movement to be the best way to get dopamine and energy for my day!
After getting ready, I typically start my workflow around 11 AM. My art practice varies as I currently have a part-time job, so on workdays I’ll paint after I get home. Otherwise, when I’m off I am in my studio for about 8-12 hours a day. On weekend evenings I’ll attend gallery openings or catch up with friends. Oh yeah, and on average I sit in LA traffic about 1-2 hours a day.
Growing up in the Bay Area, what kind of kid were you, what did you enjoy doing and how did you spend your time?
I’m a first generation Chinese-American, the eldest daughter born to immigrants (a since-retired tiger mom) so my upbringing was prioritized for academic excellence and career achievement. My parents were super strict and conservative, so my life was very regimented. I was a straight-A honors student, a total nerd but I always had a rebellious streak. From super early on, art was my only outlet to escape.
I would draw in secret, mostly princesses or It Girls and dream up their worlds. I spent endless hours on Girlsense and Polyvore, two now archaic fashion design and community websites, THE REAL FASHION GIRLIES KNOW. Creating new worlds where I could live out fantasy realities made me the happiest.
Coming from a Chinese background. What has that meant to you, growing up in The Bay? And has it influenced your work and the way you approach certain things?
My parents made it to America because of their grit and refusal to accept the circumstances of their reality, so that was always ingrained in me since a kid. Actually until age 13 I was only allowed to speak Chinese at home. That extreme dedication and pride are in my core values, but they also make me a perfectionist which I’m actively working on not trying to be as much.
The Bay is a huge melting pot of cultures, so there was always a dichotomy between the Confucianist ethical codes of my household and the diversity of perspectives and lifestyles which really opened my mind. Both cultures that are inherently my own, and trying to communicate the subversion of my multi-cultural experience really informs my work. My focus has been on developing an artist hand that allows my culture to shine. Traditional Chinese shanshui painting defies rational perspective and has a very philosophical and spiritual methodology, which is how I approach my practice.
So when did you start painting? And when did you start taking becoming an artist serious?
I started painting in acrylic about 5 years ago, at 18 years old it was a passion that actually saved my life during the darkest time. I only really began a sustained studio practice in the past year, 2023.
What’s your inspiration behind the various dreamlike and surreal scenes in your work?
I’m moved by the minutiae. Painting brings presence to those moments, grounding my sensitivity into a tangible visual experience. Translating abstract concepts like love, heartbreak, cruelty, empathy, peace, into artwork requires imagination and I find surrealism is the best way to do that.
I’d describe my work as supra-realistic as opposed to surrealistic, since it has more to do with conscious inner life rather than the unconscious of dreams.
Same thing goes for the various motifs and characters. Who are they and how do you come up with them?
Most of my work is self-portraits, so I’m either using myself as a literal reference or emulating my energy symbolically. My aesthetic tends to lean editorial; I’m very influenced by fashion or pop iconography and how they can define eras of collective consciousness. I ask myself, what is the best motif to represent this metaphor I’m trying to convey? And research around it and determine what would make the most sense objectively.
Sensuality, femininity, and healing. What is it about those topics that makes you want to document them?
I need to have a woo woo moment here but let me try to explain! I come from a lineage of Chinese women who were not given permission to exist in all their glorious feminine power, and the very act of my existence and my art practice is a defiance and re-writing of those histories. I am constantly in conversation with my girlfriends who are also unfolding into their greatness, and we’re collectively observing an awakening of the global feminine consciousness. As a spiritually aware woman in modern society I am compelled to and love to make work about this journey.
In simpler words, patriarchy ain’t shit and it’s dying. These boys are liars and the girls are finding out en masse!!! Like please, we are queens, quite literally the embodiment and source of creation. SO if I get my heart broken, I’m going to cry about it duh, but then I’ll paint about it, sell the painting and make a bag. BOOM 😉
Taking a snippet from your bio, your work is described as “Contradictions of narcissism and vulnerability in today’s cultural climate”. Tell me a little bit about that…
I’m very fascinated with “ego”. I am very inquisitive about my own ego, and am often philosophizing about my self-concept. The desire is always self-improvement, but it can also be seen as self-obsession. Interfacing with social media demands the maintenance of a persona, to reinforce whatever visual language or codes we are striving to sell. Even though we may have strong desires to be vulnerable for authentic connection, that vulnerability is calculated and distorted by the channels in which they are shared… We yearn to be loved, but the Internet does not love us. There is a loneliness epidemic. My work takes a meta approach to these notions and attempts to describe these emotional and spiritual experiences.
Can you walk me through your creative process. From beginning, to end result?
I get struck with inspiration in my dreams, while meditating, surprisingly often in the gym. Typically the concept for a piece appears as a cohesive visual in my mind. Then I gather references, and work out the composition in Photoshop.
I start with a sketch, then I use acrylic paint to map out the regions of shadows and highlights. With airbrush I get all the blends super creamy, then back and forth with more acrylic and airbrush for refinement and details. I’ll adapt however needed along the way to refine the vision.
How do you approach color?
Since I was a kid I always had a sensibility for color. I approach color intuitively based on what looks good and feels balanced.
With that in mind, how do you deal with creative blocks?
I feel like a creative block is just anxiety no? It’s really all in your head, whatever mean narrative you might be telling yourself. To make more art, you’ve got to experience more life so try to go outside and live it!
What motivates you?
I always thought my purpose on Earth is bigger than my lifetime. I dream about the philanthropist I want to become, not the artist that I will be. Whether it’s the artwork or the money I make from it, I’d like to create something beautiful for the future and the kids and animals that will hopefully live in it.
What are your overall thoughts about the NFT space, and where do you see NFTs compared to physical art in 5 years?
I could talk for hours about this, I’ve thought about and researched it significantly. It really tingles my brain and I love all the nuance that comes with this conversation.
With no intention of ruffling feathers… There’s incredible digital art and I have the utmost respect for my peers in the field, but I am such a purist, and there is nothing that beats experiencing art in person. The NFT space is abundant with opportunity (and also fraud) so I’m very curious how longevity and career sustainability will be defined for artists in the space since there aren’t as many obvious hallmarks as do exist in physical art. I also find the discourse in NFTs is a bit narrow or repetitive and the community maintains very IYKYK vibes (it demands a basic understanding of crypto to even get involved) – but arguably the history of cryptoart is very small if you compare it to the history of the entire art canon. The attention economy swings dramatically with trend cycles, versus with physical art there will always be interest and intellectual progression. Perhaps a lot more artists will move to NFTs or their physical work will coincide with the digital, because the technology is evolving exponentially fast and there is definitely money to be made.
Digital art is also intrinsically tied to AI art, which is going to get terrifyingly good in the next 5 years. I’ve always suspected there will be some stratification in first-world society that divides us into sectors of people that are perpetually online, chronically online, and occasionally online. There will be an ingroup that finds zero value in materiality of the tangible world, and NFTs will be their artistic mecca. But for those that still value sensory experiences IRL, there will be a massive desire for artwork that is so original, full of aura and feeling.
How would you describe a perfect day?
A day when I’m with people I love. A day when I laugh A LOT, dance to good music, and eat good food.
Alright Ann, I always ask these two questions at the end of an interview. The first is. What’s your favorite movie(s) and why?
CODA (2021) it’s such a beautiful, deeply emotional and moving masterpiece about family and following your dreams. I happy cried so much. PLEASE WATCH IT!
Ocean’s 8 (2018) I love seeing an all-woman cast winning. And it’s so bling and fabulous!
The second is. What song(s) are you currently listening to the most right now?
This changes literally every week but for now…
Count It (KLSH Remix) – Rochelle Jordan
Swim Good – Frank Ocean