Contents
Zao Wou-Ki
Creating expansive abstract paintings that connect Chinese ink traditions with European modernism.
Wind · Hommage à Edgard Varèse
- Born
- February 1920
- Birthplace
- Beijing, China
- Died
- 9 April 2013
More people
Zao Wou-Ki
Zao Wou-Ki was a Chinese-French painter and printmaker whose gestural surfaces often evoke landscape without depicting a fixed scene.
Early life
Family encouragement
Began drawing and painting as a child in a family that valued art.
Hangzhou training
Studied at the School of Fine Arts with Chinese and Western teachers.
Career
- 1941
Teaching
Began teaching after completing his studies.
- 1948
Paris move
Settled in France and explored European modern painting.
- 1964
French citizenship
Became a French citizen while maintaining connections with China.
Selected work
Wind
Marked his movement toward an abstract pictorial language.
Hommage à Edgard Varèse
Dedicated a painting to his composer friend.
Hommage à Henri Matisse
Paid tribute to another major artistic influence.
Beyond work
Poetry and friendship
Collaborated with poets, including Henri Michaux.
Autobiography
Published Autoportrait with Françoise Marquet in 1988.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and career ↗Further source ↗Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.