Su Xiaobai (1949)

Su Xiaobai

Su Xiaobai is a Chinese artist who lives and works in Düsseldorf and Shanghai.

Xiaobai studied oil painting at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, moved to Germany in 1987 to continue his studies at the Düsseldorf State Academy of Art, and returned to China in 2003. He currently lives and works between Shanghai and Düsseldorf.

Before moving to Germany, Su's work was closer to social realism. However, his direct experience of avant-garde Western art radically influenced his worldview. During the 1990s, his works became less and less figurative, and after his return to China in 2003, they increasingly focused on the basic characteristics of color, form, and surface. By eliminating recognizable subjects and images, Su's art blends with both the language of Western abstract art and the traditions of Chinese philosophy.

By mixing his signature varnish with oil, clay and pigment and painting on linen, brick and wood instead of canvas, Xiaobai achieves intricate patterns, cracks and fissures in the surface of his works. His prints echo his painting, often reproducing the densely layered planes of his lacquer works on delicate paper and ink.