Zhaoming Wu
Encyclopedia
Zhaoming Wu is a Chinese-born painter. Wu grew up in Guangzhou City
, China
. and he received his BFA
from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and his MFA
from the Academy of Art University
, San Francisco
, California
.
. At the age of 8 the government closed the schools and he had to leave. He spent his days copying comic books and studying Chinese brush painting
from a book. When he was 12, his mother, a doctor, recognizing his talent asked a patient, a professor at Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, to train her son.
Both an artist and a teacher, Wu served as a professor of painting at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts. He currently teaches painting at the Academy of Art University.
Wu lives in the San Francisco Bay Area
.
magazine described his work as "nothing if not Western in style and theme," despite Wu's training in China. This is also reflected in his choice of models.
Since 1983, Wu's work has been exhibited in Asia
, Europe
, and the United States
. He has won awards including the Merit Award at the sixth National Art Exhibition, Beijing
; the Gustafson Fund Award; the National Oil and Acrylic Painter's Society Award (United States); first place in the ninth Biennial National Figure Painting and Drawing Exhibition; second place in International Artist magazine Challenge No. 4 (Aug/Sept 2001); and the Daler-Rowney Award from the Oil Painters of America.
Wu has released two book of his work. His work has been published in International Artist Magazine (April/May 2003, August/September 2005), Art of the West (September/October 2004, July/August 2007), Art Talk Magazine (February 2005), and American Art Collector (January 2007). Wu was featured in the DVD Solitude: In the Studio with Zhaoming Wu, released December 2007.
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
, China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. and he received his BFA
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and his MFA
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
from the Academy of Art University
Academy of Art University
The Academy of Art University , a for-profit university owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in San Francisco, California in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens...
, San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Personal life
Zhaoming Wu grew up during the Cultural RevolutionCultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
. At the age of 8 the government closed the schools and he had to leave. He spent his days copying comic books and studying Chinese brush painting
Chinese painting
Chinese painting is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. The earliest paintings were not representational but ornamental; they consisted of patterns or designs rather than pictures. Early pottery was painted with spirals, zigzags, dots, or animals...
from a book. When he was 12, his mother, a doctor, recognizing his talent asked a patient, a professor at Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts, to train her son.
Both an artist and a teacher, Wu served as a professor of painting at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts. He currently teaches painting at the Academy of Art University.
Wu lives in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
.
Work
Wu focuses on figurative work, using live models, mainly women draped in cloth, although his repertoire includes landscapes and portraits. The curves of the body and folds in cloth remind Wu of nature, such as mountains, water, and sunrise and sunset. Wu's style is impressionistic and moody. It has evolved from initially painting "quickly and spontaneously" with exaggerated values and colors to growing more logical and conscious, according to Wu. Art of the WestArt of the West (magazine)
Art of the West is a magazine that specializes in fine art depicting historical and contemporary subjects of the American West.Art of the West features art and artists working in oil painting, watercolor, and bronze sculpture. It is published bimonthly with an additional annual guidebook. Publisher...
magazine described his work as "nothing if not Western in style and theme," despite Wu's training in China. This is also reflected in his choice of models.
Since 1983, Wu's work has been exhibited in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He has won awards including the Merit Award at the sixth National Art Exhibition, Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
; the Gustafson Fund Award; the National Oil and Acrylic Painter's Society Award (United States); first place in the ninth Biennial National Figure Painting and Drawing Exhibition; second place in International Artist magazine Challenge No. 4 (Aug/Sept 2001); and the Daler-Rowney Award from the Oil Painters of America.
Wu has released two book of his work. His work has been published in International Artist Magazine (April/May 2003, August/September 2005), Art of the West (September/October 2004, July/August 2007), Art Talk Magazine (February 2005), and American Art Collector (January 2007). Wu was featured in the DVD Solitude: In the Studio with Zhaoming Wu, released December 2007.
External links
- Official site
- AskArt.com: Zhaoming Wu
- MFA Faculty, Academy of Art University