Nini is an emerging ceramic artist based in Edinburgh. Her work explores humour, vulnerability and the pressures beneath everyday life. Nini’s piece The Rat in the Bathroom draws on the Chinese term “rat people” (老鼠人), evoking those at the margins, often unseen, yet resilient. With a tie and a watch, the rat wears symbols of work and status, suggesting how roles and expectations mask shared experiences of exploitation and fatigue across class. In the levelling privacy of the toilet, pretence drops away and a raw, unmasked self returns. As a Chinese woman living in a predominantly white society, Nini recognises herself in this figure, sometimes small or overlooked, but enduring. By placing a folklore creature in a banal domestic setting, she reimagines tradition to mirror contemporary realities, letting humour and unease coexist and inviting viewers to look again at what survives in the corners.

See Nini’s work as part of our annual autumn open call exhibition, Future/Past, featuring a sublime collection of works by twenty six artists inspired by ancestral echoes and future visions; pieces that dismantle tradition, reimagine narratives, and linger in the margins of the radical, the oneiric, and the everyday.

Hi Nini! Tell us, how did you arrive at the theme of your work?
The theme of my work was inspired by the Chinese internet term “rat people” (老鼠人), which describes lives that are hidden, overlooked, or pressured yet persistent. As a recent graduate stepping into the realities of society, I began to see the world from a different perspective, one shaped by survival, struggle, and resilience. These reflections led me to create the rat as a figure that embodies both vulnerability and strength, humour and unease.

Can you elaborate on the significance or symbolism of the chosen title of your work?
The title Rat in the Bathroom is quite literal, my work includes a rat, a toilet and a sink. But the bathroom is also a space of honesty. It’s where people undress, let go, and do things that are as basic and animal as pooping. I actually love that act, because it reminds me how real and equal we all are: no matter who you are, everyone does it. And yes, there’s a giant poo in the toilet, because it’s funny, but also meaningful. In this way, the rat in the bathroom becomes both comical and unsettling, pointing to that raw, animal side of being human. It’s a corner where pretence disappears, where we hide for a while from society, and where we return to ourselves.

What emotions or reactions do you hope viewers experience when they see your artwork?
I hope people laugh, that’s the first thing. Maybe some will even say “eww, that’s disgusting,” and that’s fine too. For me, the work is funny, a bit cute, and maybe strangely relatable. I don’t expect viewers to see exactly what I see, but I hope the piece opens up space for them to think in their own way. If it makes someone curious, my perspective is there to be discovered. Mostly, I just want them to enjoy the humour, and then, if they wish, look a little deeper.

What challenges did you experience during the creation of your work and how did you overcome them?
Honestly, the process was quite smooth, I made the piece quickly, without overthinking. Technically, I could have used more tools to make it more “perfect,” but I didn’t want perfection. I wanted to keep the human, imperfect part in it. At first, I was simply making something I liked and thought was funny. The deeper meanings came together afterwards, almost like magic. When I finished, I even made a short stop-motion video with the rat, which gave me another way to see the work. Although I was inspired by the phrase “rat people” from the beginning, the whole piece grew naturally out of my hands and my humour. As a new artist, this process felt exciting, I love how the work revealed itself to me as I created it.

Which artists inspire you? Are there non-artistic influences such as literature or music that impact your work?
For this work, my strongest inspiration didn’t come from another artist but from language itself. The Chinese internet phrase “rat people” (老鼠人) deeply influenced me, it captures a feeling of being small, hidden, or struggling, yet continuing to endure. I have felt like one myself, and I think perhaps everyone has their own “rat time” at some point. This idea shaped how I imagined the rat, not only as a creature but as a reflection of human experience.

Is there anything else you would like people to know about your work or your experiences as an artist?
As a Chinese person living and making work in the UK, I sometimes feel subtly overlooked. Most people I meet are kind, but there are moments when the world feels less welcoming, a quiet pressure, a sense of not quite belonging. Those feelings of fear, isolation and smallness feed into my practice. The rat is a way of making that hidden experience visible: a creature that hides in corners, does what it must to survive, and is both resilient and vulnerable. I hope the work can offer a space for recognition, for people who have felt marginalised to see themselves, and for others to imagine what those moments feel like. I’m still early in my practice, learning to turn personal feeling into something honest and shareable, and I welcome conversation and connection around these themes.

Connect with Nini on Instagram. Future/Past runs at Six Foot Gallery until Tuesday 14th October.