Artist: Xiaoqi Li
Title: Power
Date: Contemporary
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 130 x 160 cm
Provenance: Private collection
Signature: Signed lower right
Condition Report: Good condition

Description:
"Power" by Xiaoqi Li presents a surreal and unsettling vision, where a disfigured hand stretches across the canvas, blending human and animalistic elements. The monochromatic palette emphasizes the raw texture of the skin, with exaggerated, claw-like nails and a bandaged finger suggesting pain or struggle. A delicate golden crown dangles from a thin string, symbolizing power, fragility, and unattainable authority. The hand itself, with a subtle face emerging from its surface, evokes a sense of metamorphosis, control, and inner turmoil. This thought-provoking work challenges the viewer’s perception of power—whether it is something to grasp, lose, or suffer for.

About the Artist:
Li Xiaoqi, a graduate of the Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts in 2005, specializes in comprehensive art and currently works as a freelance artist based in Huangjueping, Chongqing. His works explore themes of transformation, surrealism, and human emotion, often exhibited in major contemporary art shows across China. Li has participated in exhibitions such as the 7th, 8th, and 9th Annual Exhibitions of the Sichuan Academy of Fine Arts, the Chongqing Watercolor Pastel Painting Exhibition, and solo and group shows including "Foreplay" Contemporary Art Exhibition, "Imaginary World", and "Traces" Idealistic Narrative Contemporary Art Exhibition. His work is recognized for its introspective and conceptual depth, blending realism with dreamlike distortion.