
Chelsea Xiaoyu Li (b.1998, China) lives and works in London. Li began her artistic journey with painting in childhood and spent years honing her skills through professional training. With over 8 years of experience in jewellery making, Li refined her craft and completed her Master’s in Jewellery & Metal at the Royal College of Art in 2023.
Li’s works have been featured in Marie Claire, ELLE, BAZAAR, CHINA GEMS, London Craft Week, and London Fashion Week. In 2025, Li was awarded the Gold Award by the Goldsmiths' Craft & Design Council in the UK.
Li’s practice honours the natural forms of stone, exploring the fluidity of culture and identity through carving, guided by the stone’s inherent form. By engaging with stone and its cultural lineages, Li’s work reflects a nuanced understanding of the histories and identities, embedded in vernacular craftsmanship. Informed by personal experience, historical memory, and diverse perspectives shaped by regional differences, Li’s works transcend geographical and cultural boundaries, evoking resonances between material and human experience. They explore the ambiguities of belonging and identity, offering a reflective meditation on the interplay between individual and collective selves.
Education |
|
---|---|
2021-2023 |
MA, Royal College of Art, Jewellery & Metal. |
2017-2021 |
BA, Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, Product design. |
Exhibitions & collaboration
2025 |
|
---|---|
August |
Inflow contemporary jewellery exhibition 2025, Budapest, Hungry. |
July |
The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards Summer Exhibition 2025, 02 Jul 2025 - 11 Sep 2025, The Goldsmiths' Centre, London, UK. |
May |
London Craft Week 2025, Tiangong Kaiwu: Crafting Works of Nature, China Pavilion for London, 13-18 May, London, UK. |
April |
Doing Jewellery contemporary art exhibition, JCC Center, L’AVENUE Shanghai, April 5-July 6, Shanghai, China. |
March |
The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards Exhibition 2025, March 4-7, London, Goldsmith Hall, UK. The Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards Exhibition 2025, March 26-27, Birmingham Assay Office, Birmingham, UK. |
2024 |
|
---|---|
December |
Frontières International contemporary art jewellery exhibition, Plus Trois, Paris, France. Cluster Contemporary Art Jewellery Fair 2024, London, UK. |
November |
A Poem to be Worn, Jinjing Gallery, November 2024 – March 2025, Shanghai China. |
October |
Romanian Jewelry week 2024, Bucharest, Romania. |
August |
Youtopia Fair 2024, Labelhood, Shanghai, China. Gorgeous Jewellery 1.0 Contemporary Art Jewellery exhibition, JCC Center, Tongji University, China Industrial Design Institute, Shanghai, China. |
June |
Design Shanghai 2024, Shanghai, China. |
May |
London Craft Week 2024, Crafted Elegance: A Fusion of Tradition and Innovation, Blackdot Gallery, London, UK. |
2023 |
|
---|---|
September |
Runway, wearable art collaboration with Randy Chi Ho Wong, London Fashion Week 2023, London, UK. |
Press
2025 |
|
---|---|
June |
An Appointment with Objects – Reflections on the Art of Making, China Gems Magazine, feature article, May–June 2025, print only, China. |
January |
Xiaoyu Li: Contemporary Art in Jade Carving A Canvas For Cultural Hybridity, Our Culture Magazine, artist interview & review, online article, UK. |
2024 |
|
---|---|
December |
Exploring Cultural Hybridity: Interpreting Identity in Multiculturalism, Qianlong.com, artist interview & review, online article, China. |
November |
Interpreting Contemporary Art Through Serpentine Jade, Ta Kung Pao, artist interview & review, online article, China. |
October |
BAZAAR Jewelry, October issue, print only, artist review, China. Romania Jewelry Week 2024: How Li Xiaoyu's Works Spark Cultural Dialogue, Artron Art, artist interview & review, online article, China. |
September |
ELLE Romanian, September issue, print only, artist review, Romania. |
May |
London Craft Week 2024 special edition, Blackdot Gallery, artist interview & review, Online & print publication, UK. |
January |
Marie Chire China, January issue, artist interview & review, print only, China. Finding New Possibilities for Traditional Jewelry in the Cultural Hybridity Pot of Exotic Lands, VONMO, artist interview, online article, China. Innovation of Traditional Jewelry in Contemporary Jewellery Field, artist interview, online article, Klimt02, China. |
Award |
|
---|---|
2025 |
Gold Award, Lapidary & Carving (Junior), Goldsmiths’ Craft & Design Council Awards, 2025. |
2024 |
Winner, Gorgeous Jewellery Award, Gorgeous Jewellery 1.0 Contemporary art exhibition, awarded by China Industrial Design Institute, Tongji University, JCC Center. |
2020 |
Merit Award, Hua Cai International Design Competition, awarded by Changle County Government. |