Life & Work with Feiran Wang of Irvine/ Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Feiran Wang.

Hi Feiran, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am a visual artist. Coming from a family of architects, I started my journey as an architect student, I came to Los Angeles from China to study architecture. I used to make paintings in my one bedroom apartment often when I was free after architecture school even though the classes were very intense. Some time after graduating I found my true passion which is to be an artist. I enjoy working in my studio for a long time and I enjoy expressing my mind and myself through the art. It seems all the happiness and sadness and boredom and all other people and their lives do not matter to me if I just work on art; in that world there is only myself but I never feel lonely.
After a few years of practice and trying many kinds of art subjects and different media and techniques, the subject – “Mutated Chicken” came back to me like a destiny. “Mutated Chicken” came from my childhood experience when I once met a three-legged chicken in my grandparents’ backyard. It made a very strong visual impact on me when I was a little kid. I enjoy being an artist, it is a good life, the beauty lies within the creation alone, it has little to do with fame, has not much to do with appreciation or criticism from others, to me right now it is like the feeling of facing the sunshine in the winter, it is the feeling of fingertips touching the breeze in hot summer, it is the feeling of having a pet chicken following me everywhere and all the time. Making art to me is to express myself with absolute freedom, it is hyper addictive.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I made a commitment of being an artist, it has been a colorful and fun path. It has not been smooth. First, it took me a while to encounter again the subject of Mutated Chicken, then I have been developing this subject with different media including painting, print, sculpture and animation, then I have been working with different techniques. What is challenging and important for me is to stay updated with what the global technology environment has to offer, including using computer programs to make paintings, making sculptures with 3D printing method, making modeling and animation with advanced 3D programs, making NFTs in Web3 environment, making paintings with robotics, making art with AR, VR and many more that are to come. Then Mutated Chicken also developed a collection of merchandise, art collectible toys and large scaled inflatable sculptures.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am an artist, my main art subject is Mutated Chicken, a chicken has stink eyes and six legs. I think as an artist, staying untouched and uninfluenced by the rest of the art world in the artistic sense, and keeping developing my own art understanding and preference is very important. This should come naturally, with a strong mindset of not following existing rules and common understandings, and not giving up on the passion of something that other people tell you not to do or think it is wrong to do so, sometimes that person could be the one you have trusted the most and loved the most. I am a 5 year old child in my mind. I appreciate all the raw and beautiful things in nature. I am not made to follow the society rules of adults, I refuse to understand them from the adults’ perspectives. I enjoy being a little kid. I get hurt sometimes, I am a bad kid many times. But still, I do exactly what I love doing.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I am a perfectionist. I could have a very messy studio, but I could not bear little paint discoloration on a sculpture I make. I have a hard time making decisions over small things and small situations. I don’t have a mild temper. I enjoy being taken care of more than others. I enjoy being forgiven for the things I do wrong. I like animals more than civilized human. I love chickens. I fell in love with my pet chicken deeply, her name is MuCh.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mutatedchicken.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mutated_chicken_/
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/i__love__much/

Image Credits
Urban L.