Mystical Inner Vision: Daoist Inner Contemplation in the Mediumistic Paintings of Guo Fengyi

This study examines the mediumistic paintings of Guo Fengyi (郭鳳怡 1942–2010) through the lens of Daoist inner contemplation (neiguan 內觀) and traditional Chinese medicine. Guo developed distinctive self-cultivation techniques, including Ziran Chaoneng Gong (自然超能功 Natural Superpower Qigong), Qi’e Gong (企鵝功 Penguin Qigong 氣功), and Liu Ling Shuzi Gong (劉陵數字功 Liu Ling Numerology Qigong), which resonate with ancient Chinese practices of Zhouyi (周易) divination, shamanic ritual, and Daoist visualization. Through sustained spiritual practice, she experienced what she understood as mystical revelations transmitted by the High Masters. Vivid visionary images repeatedly emerged in her consciousness, accompanied by an overwhelming sense of being guided by an unseen spiritual agency to depict an unknown transcendent realm. Following these experiences, she created nearly one thousand mediumistic paintings. Her work delves into inner landscapes of consciousness and energetic experience, expanding visual art research into the domain of “inner vision”. This study argues that Guo’s art challenges ocular-centric creative paradigms: her mode of “seeing” operates through the supersensory “eye of spirit” rather than physical sight, and artistic creation becomes a process of receiving higher-dimensional messages rather than singular self-expression. Her practice offers a critical reference for recovering the spiritual dimension in contemporary art and provides theoretical perspectives for comparative studies of international mediumistic artists such as Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) and Georgiana Houghton (1814–1884).