Xu Mao Ping

“My experience in Tokyo has given me great determination and inspiration.”—Xu Mao-Ping. Xu Mao-Ping was born in Shanghai in 1955 and graduated from Department of Stage Art of Shanghai Theatrical College. After the end of revolution, he was invited to Tokyo, Japan to hold exhibitions. Xu was challenged by the perfectionist way of Japanese culture that put him in an inevitable position to struggle for an own artistic language. He was also inspired by the Western Impressionist and Cubist styles which he first encountered in Japan.

After returning to China, Xu spent half of his time doing business while the rest continuing with his art. After five years of exploration between his career and art, he decided to change from the role of an amateur artist to a full-time artist in 2005. This is also the year when he started to create the Great Wall Series and Water Village Series. His technique and style in reinterpreting landscape was unprecedented among the Chinese artists. Xu’ s perspectives in life also evolved during his stay in Japan. To him, painting is just like composing music. He perceives painting as a mélange of feelings and observations.

With the aid of music in his art, Xu has been working increasingly abstract. No one including Xu himself could believe that originally a follower of realistic painting in service to the state would turn out to paint in such an abstract way and has achieved good results. He has won many prizes and his works are collected by the family of Fukuda Kyuo who was the former President of Japan, as well as private collectors in Japan, the U. S., Germany, England and Holland. His exhibition lists are vast: Exhibition of Chinese Artists’ Works in Tokyo; Japanese and Chinese United Exhibition; Shanghai and Australian Artists’ Works United Exhibition; Shanghai Oil Painting Exhibition and Chinese and Italian Oil Painting Exhibition etc. Xu is currently a member of Chinese Artists Association and Chinese Seal Cutting Artists Association, an executive trustee of Chinese Art Sculptors Association in Japan.