Zeng Fanzhi

One of the most discussed exhibitions during the 2024 Venice Biennale, by renowned Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964), is captured in this sumptuous volume. Shedding light on Zeng's ambitious practice of redefining the abstract, this book features two recent bodies of work—oil paintings and works on handmade paper. Emerging from the artist's decades of research in color theory, Zeng's new oil paintings draw on and challenge Impressionist and pointillist practices, with layers of brushwork creating figurative elements that are readily recognizable from afar but dissolve when viewed up close. In a world inundated with machine-rendered images, Zeng's boundary-pushing experiments inspire viewers to experience the beauty and time-honored art and craft of painting. Zeng's works on handmade paper, rendered in ink, graphite, chalk, gold dust and other mineral pigments, point to a new direction in his practice.

This book was published in conjunction with Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Chinese painter Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964) became known for his Masks series in the mid-1990s. This catalog of a solo show at the Museum of Art Pudong in Shanghai adds works from series across his career, from his earliest portraits of friends through abstract landscapes of the 2000s up to his recent Sparkling Paintings.

A pioneer of contemporary art in China, Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964) is celebrated globally for his constantly evolving style and subject matter, and the works gathered here herald his latest artistic breakthroughs that contemplate the intersection of Western art and style with traditional Chinese subject matter and philosophy. "They are not real landscapes. They are about an experience of miao wu [marvelous revelation]," he has written. "Miao wu constitutes a restless journey of discovery."
Gathering 10 works on canvas executed over the past few years—some of which are over 10 feet tall—the book documents Zeng’s latest advances in brushwork and color, celebrating his intuitive approach to painting. Vivid yellow, cyan blue and vermillion are set as the dominant colors that define each painting, while tonal variations remain nuanced as Zeng’s signature inky black brushstroke creates a vibrant network of patterning.

Drawing on research materials from dealers, auction houses, museums and collectors, this landmark publication compiles every confirmed work of Chinese expressionist painter Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964) from 1984 to 2002. Fanzhi’s art fuses China’s ’85 New Wave movement, German Expressionism and French Romanticism. He first received international acclaim with his Hospital (1991–92), Meat (1992–94) and Mask (1994–2004) series.
The works are presented chronologically, and—in conjunction with the second volume—account for the entire oeuvre of the artist to date. Each plate is accompanied by contextual information, including preparatory studies, documentary photographs, exhibition records and associated primary archival documents. The result is prodigious: the book boasts 450 color illustrations and documentary photographs over the span of 500 pages. Further, editor Gladys Chung provides a detailed timeline of Fanzhi’s life; scholarly essays on the impact of his work in China and beyond are also included.

This exhibition catalog accompanies a trio of simultaneous shows by Chinese painter Zeng Fanzhi (born 1964) across Hauser & Wirth venues in Hong Kong, London and Zurich. Each location focuses on a different theme: abstract landscape, figuration and the intersection of Chinese and Western representation in drawing and painting. Together the book gives an overview of the latest developments in the ever-evolving style of one of China’s best-known exponents of expressionistic figuration.