Hi, I'm Kai,
a molecular biologist and science-inspired artist
Hi, I'm Kai,
a molecular biologist and science-inspired artist
My Story Began With…
I was bron and raised in China, and my connection to Chinese culture and history remains central to who I am. Over the years, living and working across different countries and intellectual traditions has shaped the way I understand complexity. Growing up between worlds — geographically, culturally and academically — placed me in liminal spaces, where I learned to see both from within and from outside. That position has given me rootedness in my own cultural origins, as well as the perspective to recognize the resonances and differences that shape other way of living. This in-between vantage point continues to inform how i think and create.
My Story Began With…
I was bron and raised in China, and my connection to Chinese culture and history remains central to who I am. Over the years, living and working across different countries and intellectual traditions has shaped the way I understand complexity. Growing up between worlds — geographically, culturally and academically — placed me in liminal spaces, where I learned to see both from within and from outside. That position has given me rootedness in my own cultural origins, as well as the perspective to recognize the resonances and differences that shape other way of living. This in-between vantage point continues to inform how i think and create.
My Root in Molecular Science
I earned my PhD in Genetics and Genomics from Iowa State University in United States and completed my posdoctoral research Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. My work has focused on aging, cardiac dieasea, mitochondrial function, and RNA regulation — studying how molecular process shape life at the most fundamental level.
My Root in Molecular Science
I earned my PhD in Genetics and Genomics from Iowa State University in United States and completed my posdoctoral research Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. My work has focused on aging, cardiac dieasea, mitochondrial function, and RNA regulation — studying how molecular process shape life at the most fundamental level.
My Passion for Art
Throughout my scientific training, I was continually struck by the beauty of cells and molecules. Nature is, without question, the most meticulous artist of all!
Gradually, I began to paint what I studied. What started as a personal practice slowly became another way of thinking. Painting allowed me to move from analysis to perception —from dissecting structures to inhabiting within.
When I draw, I sometimes imagine myself as a molecule within a living system, experiencing the world from the intimate scale. From there, everything feels interconnected, and the distance between molecular structure and human experience begins to dissolve. After all, we too, exist as part of a vast universe.
My Passion for Art
Throughout my scientific training, I was continually struck by the beauty of cells and molecules. Nature is, without question, the most meticulous artist of all!
Gradually, I began to paint what I studied. What started as a personal practice slowly became another way of thinking. Painting allowed me to move from analysis to perception —from dissecting structures to inhabiting within.
When I draw, I sometimes imagine myself as a molecule within a living system, experiencing the world from the intimate scale. From there, everything feels interconnected, and the distance between molecular structure and human experience begins to dissolve. After all, we too, exist as part of a vast universe.
Rethinking at the molecular scale
Science taught me how to analyze structure; art taught me how to perceive it. Today, I translate aging, emotion, and the vulnerabilities of life into molecular forms — not to simplify them, but to see them more fully. Through Liminal Science Studio, I continue to be inspired by science through another language, using art and reflection to rethink life at the molecular scale.
Rethinking at the molecular scale
Science taught me how to analyze structure; art taught me how to perceive it. Today, I translate aging, emotion, and the vulnerabilities of life into molecular forms — not to simplify them, but to see them more fully. Through Liminal Science Studio, I continue to be inspired by science through another language, using art and reflection to rethink life at the molecular scale.