Mao Lizi was born in Shanghai in 1950 under the name Zhang Zhunli. His family moved to Beijing when he was three, and Mao Lizi began to study to paint on his own at age eleven. He graduated with a Master of Arts degree from the 
Oil Painting Department of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing in 1987. A founding member of the infamous “Stars” group of avant-garde artists, he has exhibited his work in numerous museums and galleries internationally since the early 1980s. Today, he divides his time between Paris and Beijing, working as a professional painter, designer and architect. Like many enterprising Chinese artists, Mao Lizi is involved on many levels with new businesses in Beijing. He owns and operates a restaurant in the ‘798’ arts district and maintains his design company offices in the same area. Mao Lizi continues to produce his fine art and his work is collected internationally by museums and private collectors. He will always be recognized as a pioneer of the Chinese avant-garde.
Ancient China, 1986
Oil on Board
32" x 32" (81.3cm x 81.3cm)About this work
According to Mao Lizi, his unique style has three basic elements: it is photographic, but not photorealist; it is somewhat abstract, but not about abstraction; and often, it employs the techniques of trompe l’oeil painting. Mao Lizi has said of his work, “I can’t compare my paintings to others by contemporary Chinese artists and I don’t think I’ve been influenced by any particular Western style either. I would describe what I do as Popular art. That doesn’t mean Pop art. I want my paintings to look exactly like what they are. If I paint a wall with graffiti or torn paper as in ‘Ancient China’ then it has to be the same size as the wall I remembered. If I add things:: it is only to get the viewer to see reality in a different way, but it is still about what I saw. It is about reality.”
New Life, 1988
Oil on Board
32" x 36" (81cm x 91cm)About this work
According to Mao Lizi, his unique style has three basic elements: it is photographic, but not photorealist; it is somewhat abstract, but not about abstraction; and often, it employs the techniques of trompe l’oeil painting. Mao Lizi has said of his work, “I can’t compare my paintings to others by contemporary Chinese artists and I don’t think I’ve been influenced by any particular Western style either. I would describe what I do as Popular art. That doesn’t mean Pop art. I want my paintings to look exactly like what they are. If I paint a wall then my painting has to be the same size as the wall I remembered. If I add things, it is only to get the viewer to see reality in a different way, but it is still about what I saw. It is about reality.”
