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In Beyond the Eyes, artist Yuqi Liu draws from the natural world not only as subject, but as collaborator. Centering on the hidden lives of fungi, the project explores how mushrooms might shift the way we see—both visually and ecologically. Blending microscopy, handmade paper, and traditional printmaking, Yuqi’s artist book invites a slow, tactile engagement with fungal life and its often-invisible complexity.

The project began with Yuqi foraging mushrooms in the woods of New England, guided by seasonal rhythms and an intuitive process of observation. Back in the studio, she examined the structures of mushrooms under a microscope. These delicate and intricate forms—webbed gills, cellular lattices, spore arrangements—were captured through microphotography and later translated into copper plate etchings. Using pure etching techniques, the prints were transferred onto paper handmade from shiitake mushrooms and Kozo fiber. The transformation—from fungi to fiber, from image to print—mirrors the natural cycles of decay and renewal that ground her practice.

The mushroom paper itself is an essential part of the project. The shiitake mushrooms were grown by the artist using a home cultivation kit, then pulped and combined with Kozo fiber to create sheets. This labor-intensive process involved beating the fresh mushrooms into pulp, mixing them with pre-beaten Kozo, and reforming the blend through traditional papermaking methods. In this way, the mushrooms become both the subject and substrate of the book—embedding their presence physically and metaphorically into each page.

Each unbound spread of Beyond the Eyes weaves together etchings, field notes, poetic fragments, and subtle textures. The book’s quiet palette and organic forms echo the forest floor, inviting close observation and gentle handling. Created at the intersection of science, craft, and ecological awareness, the work reflects Yuqi’s deep interest in fungi as metaphors for resilience, reciprocity, and interconnection. For her, the book is not merely an object, but an evolving process—shaped by cycles of foraging, growing, breaking down, and remaking.

Yuqi Liu (b. 2002, China) is a printmaker, bookmaker, and research-based artist currently pursuing her MFA in Printmaking at the Rhode Island School of Design. She earned her BFA in Illustration and Printmaking from Parsons School of Design, graduating with departmental honors.

Yuqi is the co-founder of Yuqi Studio in Anhui, China, where she leads workshops and promotes traditional print and papermaking practices. Her work has been exhibited across the U.S., including the BWAC Gallery in Brooklyn, the Idiosyncratic Printmaking Biennial at RISD, and the Art Complex Museum in Massachusetts, where she received the 2025 Takach Press Award. Her artist books and prints are held in public collections including the Fleet Library Special Collections at RISD, the New York Public Library, and the RISD Museum.

Rooted in ecofeminism, land-based research, and material storytelling, Yuqi’s practice spans print, sculpture, and bookmaking. Recent projects include Between Silence and Sword (寂与刃), an installation that reimagines a poem by Qiu Jin in the Nüshu script using pulp printing on handmade paper.