Cat Liu (they/any) is an artist who uses kinetic sculpture, book forms, printing, and handmade paper to explore invisibility, escapism, and secret identities. Their work is grounded in material-based research, with a particular focus on surface interaction, ecological processes, embedded forms of communication, and how materials become carriers of cultural, chemical, and environmental specificity.

Cat received a Master of Fine Arts in Book Arts at the University of Iowa Center for the Book in 2019. They also receive two University of Iowa Graduate College Summer Fellowship grants, a University of Iowa Stanley Graduate Research Grant, and a Fulbright research grant to study dyeing, printing, papermaking practices in China and Japan. Through these experiences, they became interested in how visible reactions of natural dyes form the basis of a sensory, interactive language. This led to a series of research-based artworks and publications, including an essay in Paper and Colour: Dyes Around the World (Legacy Press), in which detailed the development of plant-based intaglio inks designed to chemically interact with printing matrices. These inks were formulated from plant extracts such as sappanwood and logwood, combined with mordants and soy-based binders to allow for controlled, reactive prints without the use of toxic solvents. The research emphasized the role of experimentation in blending historical technique with contemporary applications—particularly in settings that prioritize sustainability, health safety, and accessibility.

Currently, Cat is based in Tokyo, Japan, researching tangible computing with Keio University Graduate School of Media Design’s Future Crafts Lab. There, they are exploring how combining aizome, papermaking, speculative design, and ethnocomputational creativity can be means of reskilling and regaining cultural agency.