Yixi Tian

Image from “Veiled by cloud and mist” project by Yixi Tian

Biography

Website: tianyixi.com

Yixi Tian (b. 1997, Guizhou, China) is a photographer working between China and the Netherlands. Her practice focuses on traditional and non-institutional healing systems in changing social contexts. Grounded in long-term fieldwork and close relationships, she uses photography, text, and multimedia to explore how embodied forms of care continue, transform, or disappear under the pressures of modernization. Her current work looks at Miao medicine in China, focusing on its local functions and fading presence, and at contemporary spiritual practices in the Netherlands, where questions of appropriation, commodification, and erasure arise. She asks what it means to heal, and who defines it.

The project

Miao medicine, a unique branch of traditional Chinese medicine, plays a vital role in underserved areas through its holistic view of life and natural therapies. Due to China’s complex regional and environmental conditions, some communities, especially those in mountainous regions such as my hometown in Guizhou, often face limited access to modern medical care. Miao doctors have become indispensable in these settings through their use of herbal remedies, acupuncture, and personalized treatments that offer physical healing and spiritual support deeply rooted in local culture.

Image from “Veiled by cloud and mist” project by Yixi Tian

Image from “Veiled by cloud and mist” project by Yixi Tian

Since 2022, I have been researching Miao doctors in my hometown of Qiandongnan, exploring the ongoing vitality of Miao medicine while also engaging with broader social and cultural dynamics. In contemporary society, the standardization of technology and systems often neglects individual and community needs. In contrast, Miao medicine’s emphasis on interconnected care, reliance on natural resources, and integration within the community offer an alternative perspective.This approach is more than a solution, as it represents a value system that highlights harmony between humans and nature and acknowledges life’s complexity. Miao medicine reminds us that healing begins in relationship with the self, with others, and with the living world.