Yitong Wu is a Chinese illustrator working primarily with gouache and digital media. My work draws inspiration from fantasy, fairy tales, and the strange, creating whimsical worlds inhabited by curious creatures and dreamlike characters. Through storytelling and imaginative imagery, I explore themes of wonder, emotion, and transformation, inviting viewers into spaces that feel both familiar and otherworldly.
Before Wings
Japanese gouache paint, 2026
As an international student, I often feel as though I exist between different moments in time. Memories of home remain vivid, while the present is filled with uncertainty, adaptation, and constant self-reflection.
In this work, a solitary figure rests within a fragile cocoon-like space, surrounded by imagined plants, insects, and dreamlike creatures. These elements symbolize the emotional worlds we carry with us across borders—memories, fears, hopes, and identities that continue to transform over time.
The title of the exhibition resonates with my experience of living between past, present, and future. The figure is neither fully asleep nor awake, neither arriving nor leaving. Instead, she exists in a moment of becoming, holding together multiple versions of herself while searching for a place to belong.