Born in 1981 in Anxi – a mountainous county known as the Tea Capital of China in Quanzhou, Fujian Province, Chen Chunmu studied in the Oil Painting Department of Fujian Normal University, graduating in 2003. Mysterious creatures and plants – enigmatic imagery that seems to be derived from the artist’s dreams – characterise his surrealist paintings, which are rendered in subtle colours with flowing brushstrokes. The hybrid beings that Chen creates are a way of reflecting on childhood memories of exploring the deep mountains and forests in his hometown. Yet they also convey the ambivalent feelings experienced by many of his generation about the uncertainty of life in a rapidly changing world. His work has been shown widely in solo and group exhibitions, including ‘Memory’, Leo Gallery, Hong Kong (2019); ‘Small is Beautiful VII’, Leo Gallery, Shanghai (2017); ‘The Jumble of Growth – The 3rd Today’s Documents’, Today Art Museum, Beijing (2016); ‘Intruder/Pain Peacefully’, Art Museum of Fujian, Fuzhou (2016); ‘Fujianese Contemporary Art Exhibition’, Soka Gakkai Malaysia, Malaysia (2014); ‘The Appreciation Party of Chunmu’s Works’, Blue Roof Museum, Chengdu (2012); and ‘Worms Revolution’, Soobin Art International, Singapore (2011). Chen Chunmu lives and works in Beijing.

The White Rabbit Collection is one of the world’s most extensive and significant collections of contemporary art from China. With a focus on works created since the year 2000, the Collection contains almost 3,000 works by over 750 artists and continues to expand. Note that when you click on the link below you will be forwarded to the White Rabbit Collection website.

Explore the work of Chen Chunmu in the collection database