Artist ‘Chills Out’ in Beijing’s 798 Art Zone

A new solo exhibition by Chinese contemporary artist Wu Mingzhong kicked off at the Xindong Cheng Space for Contemporary Art in Beijing's 798 Art Zone last week. Simply by looking at the name of the exhibition -Hey, Just Chill!- it's easy to see what Wu thinks about the fast pace of modern life. All the paintings on display were created by the Hebei-born artist over the past four years and includeYouth with Lion,The Heaven on EarthandListening to the Sound of Pine. The artist's signature element, a crystal clear man of glass, appears throughout his latest works. Wu explained that the man is like an empty wine cup and symbolizes the emptiness he personally felt in his life after falling very ill in 2010.

"At the time, lying in bed and watching the trees outside made me realize how human beings are no match for trees, which can live for a hundred or even a thousand years," he said, adding that he changed this theme in his later paintings. Pine trees, stones and cranes, all Chinese symbols of longevity appear in most of his paintings as expressions of his deep feeling towards life and death.

Art critic Ji Shaofeng describes Wu's work as having gone from thinking about the material world to turning to thoughts on the ultimate questions about "life and existence." The exhibition will end on June 30.