Intro
From working at a state-owned company to becoming a full-time artist, from the playful Cartoon Series to the soulful Butterfly Series, and then to the expansive Snow Mountain Series—Xue Manli’s twenty-year journey has always been tied to her own inner growth. For her, art isn’t just a career choice, it’s an irreplaceable kind of true love.
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01 From State Job to Bluetop: A Brave Leap
Back in 2006, Xue quit her stable job at a big state-owned company and moved into Chengdu’s Bluetop Art District to become a professional artist.
At the time, Bluetop was buzzing with artists like Zhou Chunya and Luo Fahui. With encouragement from these mentors, she quickly found her footing.
Her early Cartoon Series gained a lot of recognition and even caught the attention of curator Lu Yongzhi, who invited her to join the Anime Aesthetics Biennale.
But even with the success, she didn’t want to just repeat what was “marketable.”
“I still wanted to follow my own inner voice.”
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02 Butterflies: Rebirth in the Rough
Through years of psychoanalysis, Xue gradually turned her focus to butterflies.
“A butterfly transforms from a caterpillar, breaks out of its cocoon, and takes flight. To me, that’s like constantly being reborn.”
Her butterflies aren’t flawless or decorative—they’re textured, broken, and raw.
As she puts it, “Life, like Zhang Ailing said, is a gorgeous robe, but crawling with lice.”
That tension between beauty and imperfection became the heart of her Butterfly Series.
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03 Snow Mountains: From the Personal to the Vast
Later on, her work shifted again—from the delicate details of butterflies to the grandeur of snow mountains.
“Butterflies speak about individual lives, while snow mountains tell bigger, broader stories.”
Up close, her paintings look abstract, just layers and textures. From afar, they form landscapes of snow.
This change wasn’t just technical, it was also personal—moving from inward self-reflection to a more expansive outlook on life.
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04 Art and Life: Finding Balance
“I couldn’t survive on art alone,” Xue admits with disarming honesty.
She experienced the boom years of China’s art market around 2007–2008, and the sudden downturn afterward. To stay balanced, she decided to become a university lecturer.
Teaching gave her stability, but it also kept her connected with younger generations. “The opportunities and resources are always there,” she says, “but what I really want is to focus my energy on the work itself.”
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05 Freedom and the Future
Although she once signed with galleries in Shanghai and had successful solo shows, Xue has mostly preferred to remain independent.
Now, she paints in the quiet of the mountains, enjoying a life of solitude and focus.
At the same time, she’s noticed that more collectors are starting to want original works for their homes—not just prints—which has given her practice a stronger professional foundation.
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06 Words for Young Artists
“If it’s not true love, sticking with art will feel miserable.
For me, it really is true love, so no matter what, I’ll keep painting.”
That’s her advice to young artists—and also the most authentic summary of her own twenty-year path.
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✨ In Xue Manli’s work, butterflies and snow mountains aren’t just images of nature—they’re metaphors for her own journey. Over the past two decades, she’s been answering one question with her brush:
“What do I truly want?”