“The wonder of lacquer goes far beyond the objects themselves.”
In 2024, Miao Tan and Siying Cui founded qīqíqǐqì Studio in London, a name built from the four tones of ( qi ) pronounced ( ch’i ) (漆) in Chinese Pinyin, represented by four Chinese characters:
qī
qí
qǐ
qì
漆
奇
岂
器
Lacquer
wonder
goes far beyond
the objects themselves
大漆
之奇
岂止
器物
This name reflects our attitude: to liberate natural lacquer from fixed symbols and categories, allowing it to become a method, a relation, and a way of thinking.
As a platform for research and creation, qīqíqǐqì Studio operates at the intersection of material experimentation and critical cultural inquiry.
By combining natural lacquer with fibre materials, we explore the agency of materials through their fluidity and instability, and extend this inquiry into the reconstruction of aesthetic norms, hierarchies, and narrative frameworks.
Our practice encompasses material experimentation, publications, and exhibitions, emphasising process and openness while seeking to activate new modes of perception and narration.