Solitory Chinese ladies savor moments of calm and daydreams as they stroke and confide in their feline friends in a tranquil sculpture series by Xie Aige.

Life is hectic, people are everywhere, there's pressure to socialize and it's hard to seize peaceful moments only for ourselves, and maybe a cat. Being alone can be a luxury.

Female sculptor Xie Aige, 30, celebrates 15 tranquil moments in 15 sculptures of women, some with their cats. The "Happy Land" statues are around 30 centimeters high; most are in fiberglass, one is ceramic, two are in copper.

The exhibition is underway at Shanghai Sculpture Space on Huaihai Road.

Most of the works are calm Chinese ladies, with vague undefined faces, enjoying their secret time all alone, or with a cat.

The simple figures are immersed in a happy land of their own, enjoying freedom, privacy and solitude. There is no mist of sadness, but a sense of completeness, isolation that is deliberately chosen and has a bit of self-intoxication.

Xie says daydreaming is part of her life, and every woman's life. Whether in a quiet coffee house or bar with loud music, she can always escape to her own world.

"My soul is in my own happy land alone, though my body may still be in the noisy city with all the other people," she says. "Loneliness is not always something to regret: sometimes it is a treasure to cherish."

Spending the whole afternoon just by herself, with a cup of lemon tea, is utterly pleasurable and luxurious, in Xie's view. But the hectic pace of life makes it difficult to slow down, to stop and indulge in solitude.

To Xie, cats are not simply pets or decorations for women. They are close friends with whom women share secrets.