Summer, 2025
The figures I paint are not specific individuals but embodiments of modern myth: adventurers suspended before choice, trapped in their own reflections, their hands and bodies communicating silently. These moments of impassivity—neither victory nor defeat—capture the loneliness and tension inherent in the spirit of adventure.
Zhang Shangfeng
Zhang Shangfeng (b. 1998, Xi’an, China) lives and works in Xi’an. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts in Oil Painting from Xi’an Academy of Fine Arts (2020, 2023), participating in exchange programs at the University of the Arts, Belgrade, and study visits in the United Kingdom in 2022.
Zhang’s paintings explore the psychological and mythic dimensions of human experience, capturing figures in suspended, contemplative moments that precede decisive action. His imagery is dominated by masculine protagonists—adventurers and archetypal figures—who navigate a liminal space between human, god, and animal. These figures often appear isolated, their hands, gestures, and postures conveying subtle narratives of emotion, hesitation, and tension. Drawing inspiration from old films, historical painting masters, and his observations of ordinary life, Zhang constructs compositions that balance formal rigor with narrative ambiguity, emphasizing the interplay of light, shadow, and dark tonalities.
He has exhibited widely in China and internationally, with solo and group exhibitions in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, London, and Seoul. Notable solo presentations include The Discourse of Neo-Mythmaking at BONIAN SPACE, Beijing (2025). His works have been featured in significant art fairs such as ART021 Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair and Art Central Hong Kong. Upcoming exhibitions include a solo show in Los Angeles (2025). Zhang’s practice continues to evolve with large-scale works, while remaining deeply invested in the study of human form, gesture, and narrative tension.
His paintings offer a meditative reflection on modern mythmaking, exploring the tension between action and inertia, and emphasizing the silent power of human presence in moments of uncertainty. Through his focus on hands, posture, and the subtle gestures of his figures, Zhang Shangfeng establishes a visual language that is at once intimate, enigmatic, and profoundly human.