Acrylic paint on stretched canvas.
Finished with protective varnish.
Ready to hang with D-rings and wire.
A signed Certificate of Authenticity.
Borrowing its title from the classic torch song, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes translates romantic melancholy into a sharp, witty visual narrative. Set against a warm ochre backdrop, a stylised profile featuring vibrant blue hair holds a lit cigarette with delicate, red-tipped fingers. A continuous, undulating ribbon of electric blue smoke rises from the tip, sweeping across the canvas in a wide loop before entering the subject’s eye socket. With clean outlines and bold flat colour planes, the artwork turns a famous lyric about emotional delusion into a surreal, minimalist loop of cause and effect.
Specialising in abstract-figurative acrylics, Yiwei Shi explores the human form through a lens of joyful distortion. Based in Sydney, Shi is known for his ability to distil complex movement into decisive, two-dimensional visions.
His portfolio oscillates between two compelling modes: a serene minimalism characterised by flat colour and simple backgrounds, and a detailed, pattern-rich aesthetic often seen in his dynamic sports illustrations. By omitting intricate details in one piece and celebrating them in the next, Shi highlights the diverse textures of human life. His work is unified by his celebration of the "extraordinary posture," reshaped to amplify drama and spark a connection with the viewer. Each canvas is a testament to his belief that beauty and humour are found in every gesture.
