Zhang Xuerui Biography

Beijing-based Chinese artist Zhang Xuerui predominantly works in abstract colour fields, painting smooth calculated monochrome canvases with tonal variations implemented through a repetitive grid-by-grid approach. While this formal exploration of the core qualities of colour and space remains a dominant concern, the artist also examines human relationships in her apparel- and furniture-based installations and textile artworks. With a growing presence on the international art circuit, her work has been exhibited in galleries and art fairs across Europe and Asia, and features in the Australian public collections of White Rabbit Gallery, Sydney, and Cruthers Art Foundation, Perth.

Read More

Born in Shanxi Province in 1979, Zhang's formal style is unique to her life and experience. Her artistic influences and education are rooted in China, where abstraction is more than a complex conceptual pursuit; it is an ordinary, everyday aesthetic seen in abstract designs ranging from calligraphy to historic imperial ornamentation. Her grids reflect the square used in practicing calligraphy more than any metaphysical concept. Graduating with a BA in 2004 from the Architecture department of Beijing's Central Academy of Fine Arts, the artist displays principles of order and technical process common among architects in her painting technique.

Before the first brush stroke the overall tone of Zhang's canvas is meticulously pre-planned in sketches. Strictly dividing the canvas into an orderly grid, the artist typically applies three pre-set colours to separate corners. Establishing a gradient of tones through an interlocking grid process of gradually shifting colours, the artist works quickly on each row while the paint is still wet. Often the evidence of this process—the grid-lines and fast-paced blending strokes—are subsumed by the work's rhythmic pattern. Overall, the artist's process and the formal qualities in these artworks underpin an engagement with subtle gesture, drawing the audience's attention to the finest variations of colour within the cellular structure, whereby a single detail or moment rather than the whole preoccupies our vision.

Drastically more personal and emotive, Zhang's textile-based works and installations—such as Cotton print (2012) and Pulling Sweater (2011)—utilise blankets and clothing once worn by the artist or her family members. Cutting up these items associated with personal memories and experiences, and repurposing them to make new patterns and layouts—often resembling abstract painting—the artist expresses the nuances of her identity—both personal and cultural—through everyday materials.

Michael Irwin | Ocula | 2019

Zhang Xuerui
featured artworks

View 21 More
Investigation Grid · Sofa M3 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui Investigation Grid · Sofa M3, 2023 Acrylic on canvas
100 x 100 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
20240606 · Handwritten Letters by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting, textile
Zhang Xuerui 20240606 · Handwritten Letters, 2024 Watercolour, cloth, pin
38 x 29 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
Still Life · Chest S7 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui Still Life · Chest S7, 2024 Acrylic on canvas
80 x 80 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
Investigation Grid · Sofa M1 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui Investigation Grid · Sofa M1, 2023 Acrylic on canvas
100 x 100 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
Some Day Some Month Some Year - Handwritten Letters S6 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui Some Day Some Month Some Year - Handwritten Letters S6, 2022 Watercolour, black ink on handmade paper, cloth, pin
38 x 29 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
400 201805 - 1 & 2 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui 400 201805 - 1 & 2, 2018 Acrylic on canvas
240 x 240 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
Still Life · Chest XL1 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui Still Life · Chest XL1, 2023 Acrylic on canvas
240 x 240 cm
Galerie Urs Meile Request Price & Availability
225 202002 by Zhang Xuerui contemporary artwork painting
Zhang Xuerui 225 202002, 2020 Acrylic on canvas
150 x 150 cm
Tang Contemporary Art Request Price & Availability
View 21 More

Zhang Xuerui
recent exhibitions

View 3 More
View 3 More

Represented by this
Ocula Member Gallery

Galerie Urs Meile contemporary art gallery in Beijing, China
Galerie Urs Meile Beijing, Lucerne, Zurich
View 3 More
Learn more about the market for works
by Zhang Xuerui.
Enquire for a confidential discussion. Enquire Now
Simon Fisher, Ocula CEO
Ocula Advisor
Simon Fisher
Christoper Taylor, Ocula Advisor
Ocula Advisor
Christopher Taylor
Eva Fuchs, Ocula Advisor
Ocula Advisor
Eva Fuchs
Rory Mitchell, Ocula Advisor
Ocula Advisor
Rory Mitchell

Zhang Xuerui in
Ocula Advisory

Ocula discover the best in contemporary art icon.
Follow Zhang Xuerui
Stay ahead.
Receive updates on new artworks,
exhibitions and articles.
Your personal data is held in accordance with our privacy policy.
Follow
Do you have an Ocula account?
Ocula discover the best in contemporary art icon.
Get Access
Join Ocula to request price and availability of artworks, exhibition price lists and build a collection of favourite artists, galleries and artworks.
Do you have an Ocula account? Login
What best describes your interest in art?

Subscribe to our newsletter for upcoming exhibitions, available works, events and more.
By clicking Sign Up or Continue with Facebook or Google, you agree to Ocula's Terms & Conditions. Your personal data is held in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Thank you for joining us. Just one more thing...
Soon you will receive an email asking you to complete registration. If you do not receive it then you can check and edit the email address you entered.
Close
Thank you for joining us.
You can now request price and availability of artworks, exhibition price lists and build a collection of favourite artists, galleries and artworks.
Close
Welcome back to Ocula
Enter your email address and password below to login.
Reset Password
Enter your email address to receive a password reset link.
Reset Link Sent
We have sent you an email containing a link to reset your password. Simply click the link and enter your new password to complete this process.
Login