Armat Ritual: Live Art & Yoga is an artist-led public art session by Yadi Liu, created in collaboration with Chinatown BID as part of NYC Open Streets.
The ritual begins with a grounding meditation and a guided five-sense scan led by guest yoga teacher Kerstin Du. As participants settle into presence, each individual becomes part of the visual field: their bodies, gestures, and stillness form the raw material of the artwork.
Throughout the session, Yadi paints live using a three-part visual process, erase, reveal, and draw, gradually bringing forward images of the participants themselves.
Every person becomes a living surface for the work, blurring the line between observer and subject, audience and artwork.
Once the movement practice begins, Yadi continues drawing alongside the yoga flow, translating breath, micro-gestures, and collective quiet into fluid lines and emergent color.
The result is a communal portrait rendered in real time, a contemporary ritual shaped by body, art, and shared attention in the heart of Chinatown.
Rooted in stillness, formed through motion.A dialogue between Eastern contemplative wisdom and the immediacy of public space.
Credits
Concept, Direction & Visual Art: Yadi Liu
Yoga & Body Scan: Kerstin (Zijia) Du
Photography: Wellington Chen
Documentation Video: Fatou Seck
Presented in collaboration with
Chinatown BID
Part of the program
NYC DOT Open Streets
New York, 2025
Armat is a meditative art world by Yadi Liu. Where yoga, Zen, and art become one.
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