Wu Yangde, better known by his gritty alias Wujisi (roughly “Grease Mechanic”) never set out to be an artist.

Born in 1987 in rural Anhui province, he dropped out of school at 13 after a family emergency, arriving in Shanghai with little more than survival instincts. For nearly a year, he scoured the city’s streets collecting trash, dragging bags of scrap from alley to alley just to get by.

Then, everything changed when a motorcycle roared past.

Transfixed by the “insanely cool” encounter, he decided to switch gears. From there, he became an apprentice at an electric bike factory at 16 and eventually mastered motorcycle repair and opened his own shop in Fengxian District. Soon, he began collecting spare parts and scrap, discovering beauty in discarded mechanisms.

His workshop, tucked behind piles of spare parts, doubles as his studio, where he transforms discarded motorcycle components into bold, steampunk-inspired sculptures.

In 2024, Wu’s relatively low profile went mainstream with his first solo exhibition “The Fantastical World of Wujisi” at the Jiudian Shui Art Museum. His audience also grew exponentially, with him even interacting with celebrities like Francis Ng (also known as Wu Zhenyu), Xiao Yang, and Wang Yibo.

But despite these staggering heights, Wu insists he’s not chasing fame or acclaim and shies away from calling himself an artist since he “stumbled into this line of work by accident.” He still runs his shop in Fengxian. He still digs through demolition sites and trash heaps for inspiration. He still gets excited about nifty handsaws. For him, it’s all about following that feeling of making something out of nothing.

“I don’t even know if I count as an artist,” Wu says. “I’m just doing what feels right to me. I enjoy that moment when a piece comes to life.”