In Zi Peng’s works, you realise the originality of this talented painter, whose artistic individuality within his creations is apparent. Zi Peng liberates himself of his academic shackles and experiments on his own artistic voice. The artist is developing a new ism, a new signature that he can call his very own. His new artistic language, which I suspect, is one that is provocative yet pleasant and a pleasure to our senses. Through his use of the material as his unique speciality, he creates works that fuse his forcefulness of his imagination and delicacy of his personality, compelling us to see more deeply into things and reveals the multi-faceted beauty and infinite richness of art – Zi Peng’s Surrealistic World of Materialism.

Zi Peng uses Jade, a gemstone of unique symbolic energy, as his “material-muse”. As you perused through his latest crop of paintings, you will be swept away into his new and provocative imaginative realm. Initially, on first look, the featured subject is something we are familiar with, Jeff Koon’s iconic dog, a Hamburger, Hirst’s skull, a Buddha statue, an ice-cream cone, etc.; but juxtaposed within these icons is where Zi Peng’s artistic talent truly excels. His creations lead us on a surrealistic voyage to embrace and experience the balancing and harmonious effect of Jade. His innate ability to use oil to capture hyper-realistically the brilliance of this wondrous stone, intermingling with his exuberant imagination of incorporating traditional Chinese art into the very veins of the gemstone, challenges us to be open to new perspectives and wonderment – an art within an art. Upon careful inspection of the Chinese painting within each jade subject, you will be further enthralled by his mastery of capturing the vivid brushwork and intensity of Chinese ink paintings, yet preserving his own conception of nature, and his own emotions and individuality, which is the basis of Chinese ink painting.

Zi Peng’s current works compel observers not only to return to have a second, third or even multiple viewing but to discover with amazement his distinctive technique and intuition of a visionary artist who creates by manipulating perspective and realism. His art, through the use of Material and inanimate objects, challenges and mocks us, with the innocence of his subjects and his vivid imagination, to accept the impossible as “reality”. 

So once again, how would an observer journey into Zi Peng’s world? It is really simple. The artist is sending a heartfelt invitation (enhanced with the symbolic powers of Jade) for us to journey with him into his Surrealistic World of Materialism; so let me urge of all of us to embrace and RSVP to his invitation; and it will definitely and sincerely bless us with an aesthetic and enriching experience.  

Born in 1982 in Shandong, Zi Peng graduated with a Master degree from Lu Xun Fine Arts Academy, emerged top in his class. His work has been widely exhibited internationally in solo and group exhibitions. Zi Peng lives and works in Shenyang, China.