YunPing Li, 28, Featured in CULTURED's 2026 Young Photographers List
YunPing Li, a 28-year-old photographer from Madrid, has been named one of 14 artists under 30 on CULTURED magazine’s 2026 Young Photographers list. His work features staged images that delve into themes of corporeality, space, and belonging, while tackling issues such as loneliness, queerness, and loss. In a recent Q&A, Li highlights the significance of mental and physical resilience, a supportive network, and a nurturing environment for fostering creativity. He strives for technical precision, simplicity, and authenticity in his art. One of his most demanding projects portrays his birth in a water tank, drawing inspiration from Ren Hang’s photography. Li aspires to merge performance with photography and face his artistic fears.
Key facts
- YunPing Li is 28 years old and based in Madrid, Spain.
- He is featured in CULTURED's 2026 Young Photographers list, which spotlights 14 artists aged 30 or younger from around the globe.
- His staged photographs explore his changing corporeality and its ties to space and belonging.
- His work addresses fears including loneliness, abandonment, isolation, queerness, loss, and not fitting in.
- He seeks perfect technical execution, simplicity, and honesty in an image.
- For an ongoing series about his biological mom, he recreated his birth in a water tank based on Ren Hang's photography, using a human-sized display cabinet, bucket, and dolly, and shot alone with a large-format camera.
- He considers self-portraiture his most challenging subject, citing unseen technical difficulties, awkwardness, and effort.
- He aims to find his own formula as an image-maker working with performance and photography, to be bolder, reveal his soul more, overcome himself as an artist, and leave fears behind.
Entities
Artists
- YunPing Li
- Ren Hang
- Rahim Rabia
- Brian Karlsson
- Ben Jastremski
- Conall Kearney
- Elijah Chukwuka Mogoli
Institutions
- CULTURED
Locations
- Madrid
- Spain
- Ukraine
- Brooklyn