Wanying Jin
Ugly Portrait, 2019
Oil pastel on paper
16 1/2 × 11 7/10 in | 42 × 29.7 cm
Frame included
 
_________________
Wanying, born in Harbin,  is an artist and illustrator based in Shenzhen, China. With a focus on portraiture, Jin aspires to redefine elegance in the contemporary era. In Jin’s works, the unorthodox figures are characters breathing in another realm to which she holds a connection. Ambiguous in gender, race, or bone structure, these characters have no interest in the labels that separate people from each other in real life. They narrate their own stories with distinct personalities. Rather than making up these characters, Jin sees her job as bringing them to our dimensions and restoring them with paint, fabric, and make-up tools. For Jin, the most exciting aspect of this process is styling them, which is the moment when they come to life.
 
Before becoming a painter, Jin first started as an illustrator with a portfolio of fashion illustrations. She received her M.A. degree in Illustration from Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, England, and holds a B.A. in Illustration from the Arts University of Bournemouth, Poole, England.