The winners works of JIA Illustration Award

Silver Award

Yuke Li

Animal World

Tiny Issue

Struggle

Trap

Used art supplies or application soft

These works are multi-color (2-3 colors) traditional etching prints with techniques like hard ground, soft ground, chine colle

Artist's comments

1. This work uses animals to reflect the cruelty and conflict in the human world.
2. Tiny issues fragment time—animals merge as one to show a shattered life.
3. A small bird, a strong hand, and chaotic strokes express the theme of struggle.
4. Love is one kind of trap.

Judges' comments

At first glance, Yuke Li's work reminded me of a medieval bestiary. I was intrigued. I immediately noticed that this was a series of etchings, which is such a rarity these days. In addition, thanks to unexpected color schemes, the artist presents this traditional technique in her own original manner. In this drawing, the lines show classical craftsmanship. I read then the author's comments on the illustrations and realized that they are also endowed with deep philosophical meaning.

Ekaterina Borodacheva

Yuke Li’s work has a poetic and surreal feeling. I appreciate her skills in traditional etching and the way she uses detailed linework with soft, muted colors. But at the same time, the line art with mostly single-color tones in some paintings can start to feel a bit flat or repetitive. This kind of approach needs even more control in line distribution and more variation in color to keep things visually engaging. Still, I can feel the strong emotion and themes in the work, and I respect the effort behind it.

Max Liu

It’s clear that the artist has mastered the use of lines and depicts textures with great precision. The lifelike postures of the animals reflect careful and attentive observation of living creatures.

Moon Q

Yuke Li’s work stands out for its refined linework and poetic atmosphere. Her compositions are fluid and emotionally charged, blending surreal storytelling with symbolic imagery. The delicate use of color and texture enhances the dreamlike quality of her illustrations, inviting the viewer into quiet, introspective narratives.

Nadiia Zhelieznova

The etching technique and the metaphorical expressions used in this group of works remind me of those 'talking animals' founded in 19th century European illustrations. However, the difference between the two may lie in the fact that illustrations at that time were merely an appendage to the text, a tool for 'illumination', whereas the artist's images and their visual narratives are closely intertwined with her philosophical contemplations, in a synergistic way.

Yimin Wang