Yifei Xiang explores the Chinese queer experience. The Glasgow-based illustrator takes inspiration from the harsh lines of brutalist architecture to explore his soft subject matter.

Romance is the theme that illustrator Yifei Xiang has always found most creatively captivating—“especially the sad stories,” he tells us. Although there wasn’t a singular moment in the artist’s journey that spurred a clear focus on the subject, he has always felt that the whole world of love and relationships occupies his creative mind. Within this theme, he has discovered an intersection between “poetry and realism” that has taught him to “convert the subtle details within emotions into art,” experiencing deeper feelings and gaining greater self-understanding along the way.

The illustrator captures this sentimental subject through his unique perspective: “I like to document and portray relationships between men; in some way, I see it as part of my responsibility as a gay artist,” he says. “Rather than communicating the most intense and powerful moments, I prefer to show the veiled and poetic subtlety of love. This has been shaped by my background and the nature of the Chinese queer experience.”

Words by Ellis Tree.

Artwork: Romantic City by Yifei Xiang