Great Water No. 4

The second half of the Chinese word for "landscape" is water (shui). Confucius likened water to righteousness, courage, and other such virtues that were his goals for self-cultivation. In Great Water No. 4, Zhu Wei puts front and center the water element of Chinese landscapes.

The artist has said this work is part of a series inspired by a Song dynasty landscape painting by Wang Ximeng. Though Zhu chose to depict only the water element, he followed the distinctive tight-knit wave patterning seen in the original painting. He made his colors more nuanced, however, by repeatedly rinsing and further working the painting surface, which resulted in the mottling and cracking that gives the surface texture and depth.

Zhu Wei received his education in the People's Liberation Army Academy of Art, the Beijing Film Academy, and the China Institute of Art. He made his first appearance in an international exhibition in 1993 and has exhibited in more than twenty solo shows.