Newman Huo

NEW YORK CITY-BASED artist Yuan Mao is holding a series of exhibitions in Beijing and Shenzhen this year featuring his latest abstract ink paintings .

More than 30 recent works are currently on show at an exhibition being held at the Shenzhen Fine Art Museum until Thursday.

Two of his abstract ink paintings, each valued at 100,000 yuan (US$13,157), will go under the hammer at contemporary Chinese art auctions in Beijing this December.

Earlier this year, Yuan staged two exhibitions at the 798 art community in Beijing, which showcased the abstract ink paintings created by him since he emigrated to the United States in 2000.

Yuan believes abstract ink painting, unlike oil painting which came to China only a century ago, best represents the essence of contemporary Chinese art.

“Over the past seven years of living abroad, I’ve tried my best to combine the good elements of traditional Chinese painting, such as brush and ink, with modern symbols, patterns or images to create an abstract art world of my own,” Yuan said.

Born in Wenzhou, Zhe-jiang Province, in 1959, Yuan was admitted to the Chinese painting department of the Chinese Academy of Fine Arts in Hangzhou in 1980.

In 1983, Yuan became one of the few artists on the Chinese mainland to be involved in abstract ink painting.

In 1989, Yuan moved to Shenzhen, and in 2000, he emigrated to the United States.

“With China prospering economically in recent years, the art market on Chinese mainland is also developing very rapidly,” Yuan said. “As collectors from home and abroad are beginning to pay attention to the abstract Chinese ink paintings, I’m considering moving back to China.”

After opening a studio at the 798 art community in Beiing earlier this year, Yuan is opening another one in Bao’an District this month.