Born in Zibo, Shandong Province, Yu Jidong, a modern-day literati artist, is interested in the fundamental qualities of ink painting. Minimalistic and almost scientific in his approach, he explores the patterns, gradations, and nuances of the ink medium, as well as its most basic brush mark, the line, in an attempt to capture the most essential properties of ink expression. Similar to the art of Zhang Yu, whom he considers his mentor, Yu Jidong’s calculated approach and visual deconstruction of ink painting enters into the realm of performance.