Qu Jinzhong

Qu Jinzhong 瞿金忠

Born 1958, Kunming, China

Qu Jinzhong was born in Kunming, Yunnan, in 1958 and graduated from the Fine Arts Department of the Yunnan Academy of Fine Arts in 1986. In 1992, he moved to Beijing as a full-time artist and became part of the influential Yuanmingyuan Artist Village, a key center of avant-garde art in China during the early 1990s.

Qu gained international recognition in 1998 when his painting Fishing Girl was selected for the World Artists series and published in World Arts (Chinese Chapter) in Hong Kong. His artistic practice is deeply rooted in personal experience, combining reflections on memory, rural identity, and lived reality with a strong awareness of the social and cultural environment around him.

Over the course of his life, Qu has undertaken a wide range of roles — including working as an educated youth during the Cultural Revolution, as well as a carpenter, policeman, journalist, editor, and educator. He later served as an associate professor at Yunnan universities, experiences that further enriched the narrative depth of his work.

Qu Jinzhong’s paintings are widely collected by institutions and private collectors, establishing him as a significant figure in contemporary Chinese art. Grounded in everyday life and shaped by his personal journey, his work offers a vivid and thoughtful exploration of identity, society, and the human condition.