I attempted to combine my figure painting technique with a still life to create a narrative that incorporates memories from my Beijing apartment. I haven’t returned to China in a few years, and my recollections of my life there have become somewhat distorted; almost as if they belonged to someone else. To capture my memories, I used my friends as references for my characters and included elements of the current era. My purpose in doing this was to blur and mix the visual elements of different times, and to explore the contradiction and absurdity of placing these two elements side by side. I have found that in both my artwork and my life, the reference to the past is often changed when juxtaposed with contemporary visuals. Through my paintings, I seek to portray the complexities of human connection and how our environment and the passage of time can influence these relationships. By depicting two characters, I am able to represent the fundamental aspects of any relationship. The narrative of my painting usually begins with the two characters interacting with each other, and then their relationship develops and the challenges start to build. I am striving to express the intricacies of human relationships and how our environment and time can affect them.