Today we’d like to introduce you to Yuan Butler
Hi Yuan, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in northern China, where I grew up watching my grandfather create intricate root carvings and my grandmother paint with watercolors to design her embroidery patterns. Immersed in this artistic environment, I developed a passion for art and began showing talent in drawing at the age of seven.
My life took a significant turn when I met a local painter who shared her insights into art with me and profoundly influenced my artistic growth. Under her guidance, I learned traditional ink and wash painting. One of my ink and wash pieces won third place in a student competition, which led my elementary school to sponsor my enrollment in an art academy to learn drawing for several years with free tuition. During the summers, my parents also enrolled me in a watercolor painting program at a dyeing factory’s summer camp. By middle school, I was responsible for drawing section in school poster until I won the first place in a logo design contest in school’s art festival. After immigrating to the United States in 2014, I transitioned to oil painting, capturing light and colors in nature through plein air painting and occasionally creating portraits with my artist friends. To refine my representational skills, I took on landscape and portraiture commissions.
While pursuing my MFA in Painting at Savannah College of Art and Design, I gained a systematic understanding of modern and contemporary art, developed concept with my own work. The graduate school experience also broadened my exposure to diverse materials, techniques, and artistic approaches, shaping my growth as an artist.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My creative journey feels like a deep dive into my inner self, where the boundaries between the real and the unreal gradually blur and dissolve. My biggest struggle is the thought of wether or not I should maintain the consistency in my work, and it took me years to let it go, choosing instead to embrace changes and adapt my aesthetics in pursuit of originality.
When I was younger, I aspired to create paintings that resonated deeply and “hit home.” I relied heavily on intuition, keeping my work raw and “naïve.” But over time, I began to question that approach. Why does art need to be gut-wrenching to be meaningful? Eventually, I let my subconscious mind take the lead, allowing my imagination to draw inspiration from my immediate surroundings. I gave myself the freedom to move forward, let my stories evolve, and grow into a more authentic version of myself.
Now, my paintings become the spaces where truth resides, wherever that may be. I believe the true worth of a painting lies in its ability to invite people in—to make them feel, to see beyond the surface. For me, art should guide you toward the light or simply brings joy.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am an art professor, a visual artist, and a mother. Balancing teaching, art, and motherhood has brought both challenges and deep rewards. My fascination with oil as a medium stems from its flexibility and its unique ability to convey a sense of life, capturing the fluidity and dynamism I observe in nature. My artistic approach blends figuration and abstraction, incorporating unreal colors and distorted forms to evoke my childhood memories of Orientalist art practices.
Each piece begins with automatic drawings, drawing inspiration from nature and my immediate surroundings. Influenced by the refined elegance of Early Baroque and Rococo masters such as Vermeer and Fragonard, I also find deep resonance in the visionary works of modern women artists like Georgia O’Keeffe and Ithell Colquhoun. These diverse influences converge in my work, shaping new allegories that transcend time and tradition.
Over time, my art has evolved into a meditative exploration—one that delves into the nuances of existence, with myself as the central figure navigating an imagined, liminal space. I take pride in my ability to balance life and work, allowing both to inform and enrich my creative practice. I believe that my willingness to indulge in beauty and embrace a fluid, intuitive process—rather than conforming to rigid notions of reality—sets me apart in the contemporary art world.
What were you like growing up?
When I was young, I preferred the quiet corners of the world. I found solace in my surroundings. I would sit for hours, staring at the curtains in my home, imagining the patterns coming to life—dancing, shifting, and playing with me like animated companions from a secret world. My father often brought home magazines and books, I was particularly drawn to old-fashioned painters whose works carried history and romanticism. Their brushstrokes whispered secrets of a bygone era, and I spent hours studying their compositions, tracing their lines, and immersing myself in their visions.
People around me often commented that my way of thinking was different. Some said it with curiosity, others with mild concern. These remarks made me feel like an outlier, however I became acutely aware of my place as an observer, someone who existed between reality and the landscapes of my imagination. I know that deep inside, I carried a storm—a deep yearning for the strange and the surreal. I was fortunate to form meaningful friendships. I found solace in those who appreciated the depth of my thoughts and those who offered encouragement and reminding me that my love for art was not just a passing interest, but a calling. Their support gave me the confidence to pursue my passion, turning my childhood escape into a lifelong journey of artistic exploration.
A child lost in drawings and dreams allowed me to become an artist who continues to navigate that liminal space between reality and imagination, embracing the strange, the beautiful, and the unseen. My art is a bridge between who I was and who I have become—a testament to the power of solitude, dreams, and the unwavering belief that art is where I truly belong.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.geyuanart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/irisge66/
