Egg tempera on linen on wood panel. 5 9/10 × 7 9/10 × 1 1/5 in | 15 × 20 × 3 cm
Bu Shi creates enigmatic small-scale paintings that merge Chinese traditions of seal engraving and calligraphy with a distinctly contemporary sensibility. Born in Yunnan, China, in 1993 and now based in Ravenna, Italy, Bu Shi works with a muted, timeworn palette that recalls antique jewelry—objects both exquisite and marked by use. His canvases often invoke occult symbols and uncanny plays of light, evoking a sense of dissonance that opens portals to cultural memory and identity. Through these mysterious forms, Bu Shi prompts viewers to reflect on the tension between what is inherited and what is chosen. He studied painting at Sichuan University’s College of Fine Arts and earned a master’s in Visual Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna in 2020. Bu Shi has exhibited internationally, with recent solo and group shows in Beijing, Bologna, New York, Paris, and Venice.
Egg tempera on linen on wood panel. 5 9/10 × 7 9/10 × 1 1/5 in | 15 × 20 × 3 cm
Bu Shi creates enigmatic small-scale paintings that merge Chinese traditions of seal engraving and calligraphy with a distinctly contemporary sensibility. Born in Yunnan, China, in 1993 and now based in Ravenna, Italy, Bu Shi works with a muted, timeworn palette that recalls antique jewelry—objects both exquisite and marked by use. His canvases often invoke occult symbols and uncanny plays of light, evoking a sense of dissonance that opens portals to cultural memory and identity. Through these mysterious forms, Bu Shi prompts viewers to reflect on the tension between what is inherited and what is chosen. He studied painting at Sichuan University’s College of Fine Arts and earned a master’s in Visual Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts in Bologna in 2020. Bu Shi has exhibited internationally, with recent solo and group shows in Beijing, Bologna, New York, Paris, and Venice.
