Zao Wou-Ki was a Chinese-French artist born in Beijing in 1921. He studied at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou before moving to Paris in 1948, where he became associated with the School of Paris. Zao's work was heavily influenced by Chinese calligraphy and traditional landscape painting, as well as the abstract expressionism movement in the West. He is known for his large-scale abstract paintings that blend Eastern and Western artistic traditions. Zao's work has been exhibited in major museums and galleries around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Centre Pompidou in Paris. He was awarded the Legion of Honour in France and the Order of Arts and Letters in Taiwan. Zao passed away in 2013 at the age of 92.
