Zao Wou- Ki was born in 1920 in Beijing, China and would go on to become a force in the art world renown for his work done in an abstract style. As a child he studied calligraphy. His first wife was also an artist, a song composer. For his artistic education Wou- Ki attended the Chinese Academy of Fine Art.
Zao Wou- Ki was a member of the Academie des Beaux Arts.
In the mid 1950s he divorced his wife and visited the States in 1957.
Shortly after he found his next wife, Zhu Ying, who was a movie star. Later she became a sculptor receiving critical acclaim. At her peak, she committed suicide.
A main influence on the artist was Paul Klee. Below an example of Klee’s work. Other influences were Picasso, Cezanne, and Matisse.
Price range information. Auction record was set in 2011 at $8,864,000. Already has had five works break the $1 million mark in 2013.
Here we see a brief interview with the artist. He also gives remarks about the use of space in both eastern and western painting.
Montage of works by Zao Wou- Ki.
Zao Wou- Ki passed away in April of 2013 at the age of 93 years old.
I have never seen this artists work in person, but even on a monitor his use of space is a done at a master level. A space that is very small, seems very open and large. Wonderful compositions and use of color! Zao Wou- Ki was a master of abstraction!
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Diattaart Blog 
nannus Said:
on June 29, 2013 at 8:28 pm
Great!