When Technology Feels: Xiao Jin on Rendering Emotion

Jul 7

Written By DAB

By Cansu Peker

Xiao Jin is a digital artist working at the intersection of generative systems, moving images, and spatial installations. With a background in architecture and formal training from SCI-Arc in Los Angeles, Xiao’s practice explores how digital tools from AI to real-time rendering engines like Unreal can be reimagined as poetic mediums. His work investigates emotional and perceptual states, often blurring the line between synthetic environments and felt experience.

Driven by experimentation, Xiao’s process embraces both precision and unpredictability. He treats AI as a conceptual assistant, useful for divergent thinking but always subject to the artist’s intuition and editorial judgment. Whether crafting immersive installations or machine-assisted visuals, Xiao is interested in how computational aesthetics can express ambiguity, memory, and quiet emotional intensity — expanding the expressive capacity of digital space.

We asked Xiao about his art, creative process, and inspirations.

Can you tell us about your background as a digital artist?

I've always designed within the digital world. Both my undergraduate and graduate studies were in architecture, and throughout school, nearly all of my work was digital. To express different ideas, I kept learning new tools — and one project after another, I naturally entered this field. My direction has shifted over time, but the core has always been about expressing ideas in the digital realm.

What does your experimental process look like when working with AI and real-time rendering tools? Do you allow unpredictability to shape the final outcome?

I started using AI tools as soon as they came out. For me, AI is just a tool — if it's useful, I use it; if it's not, I switch to something else. It’s great for divergent thinking but lacks control, and visuals can easily go off track.

My main real-time rendering tool is Unreal Engine. I've watched it evolve rapidly — its development has far outpaced our expectations. Aside from transparent materials, which still have some limitations, UE is incredibly powerful.

When the conditions allow, I welcome unpredictable results. As long as the image is harmonious and expresses the right idea, the form can be accidental. Hand-drawing and imagination have their own margin of error, and AI is just another "assistant" — as long as it's not wildly off. Our job is to judge, filter, and adapt when AI doesn’t deliver.

You explore how technology can be used not just to simulate, but to feel — can you talk about a specific work where this idea became especially clear or powerful?

Technology works by simulating reality in a way that tricks the brain — that’s how it evokes feeling. A film is just 24 frames per second, audio is just a recording, and yet they create immersion and emotion.

Painting works the same way — when the lighting and shading are accurate, it feels “real.” When they’re off, something feels wrong.

Digital art is a kind of painting in this sense — technology serves the emotion. It's all about what you're trying to express.

How did your time at SCI-Arc influence your current practice? Was there a moment where architectural training shifted into an art-focused exploration for you?

SCI-Arc played a huge role in my artistic awakening. It’s a place that truly nurtures artists — if you work hard enough to stay at the top, you’re allowed to call yourself one.

Its only downside is perhaps its disconnect from the industry — though that’s a common trait in architectural academia.

At SCI-Arc, the art-focused mindset is absolutely central — often more important than utility or service. If a project doesn’t have a part that truly excites you, it might not be worth doing at all. That moment when you think “this is exactly what I want” — that’s the feeling of self. I’ve always pursued what I call “narcissistic design,” and at SCI-Arc, we never had to make “pleasing designs” for external demands.

What new tools, ideas, or collaborations are you currently curious about? Is there a direction you’re itching to explore next?

I'm deeply curious about how art can better align with the market — how to serve others without losing oneself, how to express freely while still surviving. I want to know how artists can stay focused, brave, and honest in pursuing what they truly love.