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Tiya Xu is a Chinese photographer based in London and Shanghai whose work explores gender identity, the form of human body, and the female gaze. In 2025 she graduated from the BA Graphic Communication Design course at the Central Saint Martins.

Blending documentary and fashion elements, her photography captures the subtle, intimate moments of growth with a poetic and emotionally nuanced approach. Her images reveal the unspoken connections between photographer and subject, celebrating free will, vulnerability, and the hidden depths of the inner self.

Through her work, Tiya examines how individuals break free from patriarchal narratives, shifting from being passive objects of the gaze to self-possessed subjects. She employs still life, space, and symbolic imagery to metaphorically depict human’s experiences of struggle, transformation, and liberation. Drawing inspiration from literature, cinema, and contemporary art, she infuses her visuals with layered meanings that extend beyond the surface.

Group exhibitions

8/5/2025-11/5/2025
The passage of time - Liquida photofestival, Turin, Italy

3/6/2025-8/6/2025
The passage of time - Becoming of Memory, London, UK,

1/8/2025 - 14/8/2025
Womb, shell, skin - Through the Hidden Rift, Paris, France,

11/9/2025-16/9/2025
Blue ribbon - Prism, London, UK

Publications

Heya 部屋

Semper Femina