Zhu Wei is the world’s most renowned contemporary Chinese ink painter and the art form’s most important explorer. He is also among the very first group of distinguished contemporary Chinese artists recognized by the international art audience in the nineties of the 20th century. 

Zhu Wei made his first appearance in international exhibition in 1993, and has put on more than 200 exhibitions worldwide ever since. More than twenty different editions of special anthologies of his works and reviews have been published. His ink and wash works have been collected by more than 30 domestic and foreign museums.

Zhu Wei is the first artist adopting meticulous (Gong-bi) ink painting language into Chinese contemporary art scene. When many Chinese new artists were working on “political pop” and “ironic realism” oil paintings, Zhu was exploring the possibility to reflect contemporary Chinese political and social life with traditional meticulous ink and wash, and had completed representative series. His motifs differentiate his art from those traditional meticulous ink paintings, however, the techniques Zhu employed, such as coloring, outlining, blending and other, still remain the fundamental characteristics of traditional. The dramatic contrast between traditional art language and contemporary political social motifs makes his art irresistibly appealing.

Amongst the vast outstanding group of contemporary Chinese artists, Zhu Wei is one of the very few who chooses to use traditional ink painting technique to depict the social sceneries in modern days’ China. His paintings make up for an area that has often been overlooked in contemporary Chinese art, art that have local painting elements. His effort in research improves the chances of contemporary art to be relevant in China and makes it a substantial phenomenon. It allows the world to see paintings with authentic Eastern origins, to read its contemporary values, thoughts and above all, its power.