Wang Xijing 王西京 (1946 - )

Wang was born in Xi’an, Shaanxi, China. As a child, he had a flair for drawing and copied cartoons from books. His artistic interests eventually led him to study at the affiliate Middle School of Xi’an Fine Art College (西安美术学院附属中学) graduating in 1966 and subsequently found work at the Xi’an Daily, where he was appointed the newspaper’s Fine Art editor in 1968.

Wang established the Xi’an Artist Association (西安美术家协会) in 1983, the Xi’an Painting Academy (西安中国画院) in 1985, and then the Xi’an Foreign Cultural Exchange Association (西安对外文化交流协会) in 1989. He was instrumental in expanding the influence of Chinese art through his works in exhibitions and lectures at leading art schools in Southeast Asia at the time.  These included NAFA, Malaysian Institute of Art (马来西亚艺术学院) and the Oriental Culture Academy in Thailand (泰国东方书院) as well as stints in the US, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan.  Wang is known for his distinctive rendering of figures in popular Chinese folklore that are often refined and vivid. His ability to retain the essence Chinese ink brushwork, its precision and expressiveness seen as an integration of realistic and freehand styles, an innovation that injects freshness to the longstanding Chinese painting traditions of before.

Wang works and lives in his hometown in Xi’an. He has taught at the China National Academy of Arts (中国艺术研究院), Northwest University (西北大学) and Yunnan University (云南大学) and has published several volumes of art books documenting his paintings and research. He was conferred an Outstanding Contribution Award by the Chinese Government State Council, and is regaled as a first-class Chinese artist.