Octopus, Langoustine, Chalice and Tulip

• Photographer
  Qian Li
• Photo Date
  29/04/2025

This still life reinterprets Memento Mori, using withered tulip, raw seafood, and a gothic chalice to symbolise transience and decay. With no skull in sight, the fading flower becomes a quiet reminder of mortality—inviting reflection on the beauty and fragility of life.

Qian Li is a London-based still life photographer and visual artist whose work explores the interplay between the familiar and the uncanny. An Associate of the Royal Photographic Society (ARPS), she draws upon symbolism and surrealism to craft meticulously composed images that invite viewers to reconsider the everyday objects surrounding them.