London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Jul 19, 2025

From London to Wuhan: Art student depicts how the two cities reacted to COVID-19

From London to Wuhan: Art student depicts how the two cities reacted to COVID-19

Art student Liang Xiao followed the unfolding of the pandemic in her hometown, Wuhan, until the virus took over the rest of the world and reached her doorstep in London, the UK. Locked in her student accommodation, she decided to create artworks that could speak about the experience of living through the COVID-19 pandemic in the two cities.

Liang Xiao thought she would graduate with a project on jellyfish to conclude her MA in Art and Science at the University of the Arts London (UAL) this summer. The sudden outbreak of a pandemic that started right in her hometown changed her plans.

Xiao moved from her native Hubei to the UK because, in her words, "London is a really amazing city to study art." At the outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, the city where she grew up, most people in London were sympathetic. "I found that people were really friendly, because when people knew I came from Wuhan, they would say, 'Oh, are you ok? I hope your family's ok.'

"They wanted to know what has happened. They weren't afraid, they were not like some people who were afraid of me, and they said, 'Oh, you have coronavirus, you are dangerous.'"



She was once walking the streets of Chinatown, in London's city center, wearing a mask, when someone pointed at her telling her she was 'dangerous'. "I know the culture of [wearing] a mask is different between the two countries, because I asked some people, 'Why do you not want to wear the mask?' and some people in the UK just told me: 'Why do you wear a mask, mask are only needed for the sick.' They didn't think it was for self-protection."

Xiao spent lockdown in her student accommodation in 556 Holloway Road - which is also the title of the photobook she produced as part of her project – keeping in touch with her family and friends, whose daily reports ended up being part of her graduation project.

"My creation time and the materials were limited. But at that time, I felt freedom while I created, because I had a long time to think about myself. And in that time I thought about what am I good for? What's my art for?

"I thought I have all my identity and the responsibility - I need to do something and tell the people around me [about the virus], and maybe it's a good chance to show what is true about the coronavirus in the UK.



Because at the time, there was no outbreak, it wasn't dangerous like in Asia in the UK. I wanted to show it. And tell people to not be afraid of it, we can do it, we can protect ourselves or get some ideas about that."

Xiao created four artworks in total, that were then exhibited at her university's virtual graduation showcase and even shortlisted for an award, the MullenLowe NOVA Awards. She filmed a performance on her balcony, reflecting on its role in our society and creating a connection with all the people in the world looking out of their balconies during lockdown for solidarity.

She also made a light installation, and created mockup for posters she would have liked to physically show off in the streets of London, would she have had the means.

"I did some research into the viruses based on their types, the transmission routes, growth trends, development scales and results.



"When I finished my research, I found some words, the main key words on the virus. And put that on Google Photos."

With the image results, she created collages that could speak to everyone about their experience of living through the COVID-19 pandemic. "Every audience, when they see my posters, they have different ideas, different ways of thinking of it," says Xiao. She invited people to tell their own stories, or invent one inspired by her work.

The way she experienced the pandemic in London was quite different from what her family and friends were going through in Wuhan. "People went in voluntary lockdown in the city, and especially in Wuhan people like my family and my friends knew it was really, really dangerous. They knew it as a fact.



"So they really did not go out, it was really different in the UK, because you could see some people going to work, not wearing a mask, they just went running, and exercising in the street."

She also complains about the difficulty of finding face masks, and how prices rocketed out of control. "I remember the medical masks I bought in February, five of them sold for fifty pounds. There were no more masks to buy in March," she says.

After graduation Xiao went back to Wuhan to be closer to her family. She plans on staying for a year, and hopefully come back to London for a PhD.

"When I came back to Hubei, I had conversations with many people, and I wanted to know what's different, and I also did some comparisons between the UK life and the Hubei life.

People wear masks and do everything exactly the same as before the pandemic, because they just work, they study. Not a change, just that they wear the mask, just this point. So you can say something is different. But it is OK. It's a peaceful life now."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
×